A direct challenge to Abstract Expressionism’s subjectivity and gestural vigor, Photorealism was informed by the Pop predilection for representational imagery, popular iconography and tools, like projectors and airbrushes, borrowed from the worlds of commercial art and design.
Whether gritty or gleaming, the subject matter favored by Photorealists is instantly, if vaguely, familiar. It’s the stuff of yellowing snapshots and fugitive memories. The bland and the garish alike flicker between crystal-clear reality and dreamy illusion, inviting the viewer to contemplate a single moment rather than igniting a story.
The virtues of the “photo” in Photorealist art — infused as they are with dazzling qualities that are easily blurred in reproduction — are as elusive as they are allusive. “Much Photorealist painting has the vacuity of proportion and intent of an idiot-savant, long on look and short on personal timbre,” John Arthur wrote (rather admiringly) in the catalogue essay for Realism/Photorealism, a 1980 exhibition at the Philbrook Museum of Art, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At its best, Photorealism is a perpetually paused tug-of-war between the sacred and the profane, the general and the specific, the record and the object.
“Robert Bechtle invented Photorealism, in 1963,” says veteran art dealer Louis Meisel. “He took a picture of himself in the mirror with the car outside and then painted it. That was the first one.”
The meaning of the term, which began for Meisel as “a superficial way of defining and promoting a group of painters,” evolved with time, and the core group of Photorealists slowly expanded to include younger artists who traded Rolleiflexes for 60-megapixel cameras, using advanced digital technology to create paintings that transcend the detail of conventional photographs.
On 1stDibs, the collection of Photorealist art includes work by Richard Estes, Ralph Goings, Chuck Close, Audrey Flack, Charles Bell and others.
$5,200Sale Price|20% Off
(Male Nude) Untitled, 1977, Original Drawing—Lowell Nesbitt
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Lowell Nesbitt (1933-1993) Title: (Male Nude) Untitled Year: 1977 Medium: Graphite on Artist's Board Size: 48.5 x 38.75 inches Condition: Excellent Inscription: Signed & date...
Graphite
$2,600Sale Price|20% Off
(Abstract Still Life) Untitled, 1964, Ian Hornak — Painting
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002) Title: (Abstract Still Life) Untitled Year: circa 1964 Medium: Acrylic on illustration board Size: 10 x 9 inches Condition: Good Provenance: Estate of ...
Watercolor, Archival Paper
$2,600Sale Price|20% Off
(Abstract Still Life with Chessboard) Untitled, 1964, Ian Hornak — Painting
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002) Title: (Abstract Still Life with Chessboard) Untitled Year: circa 1964 Medium: Acrylic on illustration board Size: 14 x 11 inches Condition: Good Prove...
Watercolor, Archival Paper
$4,821
H 21 in W 18 in D 1 in
Nude Figure Breast & Hand Platinum Palladium Print on Wove by British Artist
Located in Preston, GB
Nude Figure with Breast & Hand, Platinum Palladium Print on Wove by Contemporary British Artist, Malcolm Pasley (Born 1956) Art measures 14 x 11 in...
Platinum
Iris 7
Located in Deddington, GB
Iris 7 [2021] original Coloured pencil on 150gsm paper Image size: H:30 cm x W:20 cm Complete Size of Unframed Work: H:30 cm x W:20 cm x D:0.01cm Sold Unframed Please note that insi...
Paper, Color Pencil
Sold|$1,650
H 30.5 in W 17.5 in
MB 023 (Figurative Life Drawing of Handsome Male Nude by Mark Beard)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Academic life drawing of male nude with charcoal and graphite by Mark Beard, "MB 023" graphite, Conte crayon and charcoal on Arches paper 30.5 x 17.5 inches unframed Signed, lower le...
Conté, Charcoal, Archival Paper, Graphite
MB 702 (Contemporary Life Drawing of Male Nude by Mark Beard)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
MB 702 (Contemporary Life Drawing of Male Nude by Mark Beard) graphite, Conte crayon and charcoal on Arches paper 30 x 19 inches unframed Con...
Conté, Charcoal, Archival Paper, Graphite
$1,600
H 21.5 in W 28 in
MB 809 (Figurative Charcoal Drawing on Paper of Two Seated Male Nude Models)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Figurative drawing made with graphite, conte crayon and charcoal on Arches paper 21.5 x 28 inches, unframed This unique life study drawing of two seated male nude models was made ...
Charcoal, Graphite, Archival Paper
$800
H 22 in W 15 in
MB 005 (Modern, Traditional Style Figurative Life Drawing of Muscular Male Nude)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Figurative nude drawing on Arches paper graphite, conte crayon and charcoal on Arches paper 22 x 15 inches unframed Contemporary figurative life study drawing of a reclining male nu...
Conté, Graphite
$1,600
H 30 in W 20 in
MB 053 (Figurative Charcoal Drawing of a Muscular Male Nude on Arches Paper)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Figurative male nude drawing made of graphite, charcoal, and conte crayon on Arches paper 30 x 20 inches, unframed This unique life study drawing of a standing male nude was made...
Crayon, Graphite, Charcoal
$235
H 24 in W 20 in D 0.13 in
A Finely Drawn, 1950s Mid-Century Modern Figure Study, Standing Male Nude Model
Located in Chicago, IL
A Very Finely Drawn Mid-Century Modern Figure Study of a Standing Young Male Nude Model (Torso) by Notable Chicago Modern Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A well executed stu...
Graphite, Paper
$235
H 24 in W 20 in D 0.13 in
A Finely Drawn, 1950s Mid-Century Modern Figure Study, Seated Male Nude Model
Located in Chicago, IL
A Very Finely Drawn Mid-Century Modern Figure Study of a Seated Young Male Nude Model by Notable Chicago Modern Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A well executed studio figure...
Graphite, Paper
$1,650
H 30 in W 18.5 in
MB 085A (Contemporary Life Drawing of Nude Male by Mark Beard)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Academic life drawing of male nude with charcoal and graphite by Mark Beard, "MB 085A" graphite, Conte crayon and charcoal on Arches paper 30 x 18.5 inches unframed Signed, lower rig...
Conté, Charcoal, Archival Paper, Graphite
$2,400
H 32.5 in W 20.5 in D 1 in
MB083, Male Nude Drawing by Mark Beard, Custom Frame
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Academic life drawing of male nude with graphite and conte crayon by Mark Beard 30 x 17.5 inches 32.5 x 20.5 inches custom framed in cherry wood molding Stamped Artist's atelier st...
Conté, Archival Paper, Graphite
$1,650
H 29.75 in W 21.75 in
MB 827 (Contemporary Life Drawing of Two Nude Males by Mark Beard)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Academic life drawing of two nude males with charcoal and graphite by Mark Beard, "MB 827" graphite, Conte crayon and charcoal on Arches paper 29.75 x 21.75 inches unframed Signed, l...
Conté, Charcoal, Archival Paper, Graphite
Renaissance Male Hand Figure Study, 1964, Ian Hornak — Drawing
By Ian Hornak
Located in Fairfield, CT
Artist: Ian Hornak (1944-2002) Title: Renaissance Male Hand Figure Study Year: circa 1964 Medium: Charcoal on vélin paper Size: 18 x 23 inches Condition: Good Provenance: Estate of I...
Charcoal
Sold
H 22 in W 26 in D 0.25 in
Reclining Nude Woman, Realist Figurative Charcoal Drawing
Located in Soquel, CA
Detailed realist figurative charcoal drawing of a reclining nude woman by California artist Marilyn Thompson (American, 1927-2015). Unsigned, but was acquired with a collection of her work. Presented in a new blue mat with foam-core backing. Paper size: 19.75"H x 24.5"W. A Northern California Artist and Musician. Marilyn Thompson (American, 1927-2015) was born in Santa Paula. California. She received an art degree from San Jose State in 1950, after which she worked for H. M. Gousha, for whom she drew many illustrations of missions and other California sites. From the mid-1970s on, she did freelance drawing and painting, with lots of commercial work (pamphlet illustrations, posters, custom birthday cards...
Paper, Charcoal
Sold
H 10.63 in W 7.09 in
Draft 2 - Polish Young Art, Realism, Drawing, Woman, Monochromatic
Located in Warsaw, PL
ALEKSANDRA KALISZ Born in Gdynia in 1992. She currently lives and works in Portugal. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk in the studio of Professor Maciej Swieszews...
Paper, Pencil
Sold
H 11.42 in W 7.88 in
Draft 4 - Polish Young Art, Realism, Drawing, Woman, Monochromatic
Located in Warsaw, PL
ALEKSANDRA KALISZ Born in Gdynia in 1992. She currently lives and works in Portugal. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk in the studio of Professor Maciej Swieszews...
Paper, Pencil
Sold
H 10.63 in W 7.09 in
Draft 5 - Polish Young Art, Realism, Drawing, Woman, Monochromatic
Located in Warsaw, PL
ALEKSANDRA KALISZ Born in Gdynia in 1992. She currently lives and works in Portugal. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk in the studio of Professor Maciej Swieszews...
Paper, Pencil
Sold
H 10.63 in W 7.09 in
Draft 6 - Polish Young Art, Realism, Drawing, Woman, Monochromatic
Located in Warsaw, PL
ALEKSANDRA KALISZ Born in Gdynia in 1992. She currently lives and works in Portugal. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk in the studio of Professor Maciej Swieszews...
Paper, Pencil
Sold
H 7.09 in W 10.63 in
Draft 1 - Polish Young Art, Realism, Drawing, Woman, Monochromatic
Located in Warsaw, PL
ALEKSANDRA KALISZ Born in Gdynia in 1992. She currently lives and works in Portugal. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk in the studio of Professor Maciej Swieszews...
Paper, Pencil