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Realist Figurative Sculptures

REALIST STYLE

Realist art attempts to portray its subject matter without artifice. Similar to naturalism, authentic realist paintings and prints see an integration of true-to-life colors, meticulous detail and linear perspectives for accurate portrayals of the world. 

Work that involves illusionistic techniques of realism dates back to the classical world, such as the deceptive trompe l’oeil used since ancient Greece. Art like this became especially popular in the 17th century when Dutch artists like Evert Collier painted objects that appeared real enough to touch. Realism as an artistic movement, however, usually refers to 19th-century French realist artists such as Honoré Daumier exploring social and political issues in biting lithographic prints, while the likes of Gustave Courbet and Jean-François Millet painting people — particularly the working class — with all their imperfections, navigating everyday urban life. This was a response to the dominant academic art tradition that favored grand paintings of myth and history. 

By the turn of the 20th century, European artists, such as the Pre-Raphaelites, were experimenting with nearly photographic realism in their work, as seen in the attention to every botanical attribute of the flowers surrounding the drowned Ophelia painted by English artist John Everett Millais.

Although abstraction was the guiding style of 20th-century art, the realism trend in American modern art endured in Edward Hopper, Andrew Wyeth and other artists’ depictions of the complexities of the human experience. In the late 1960s, Photorealism emerged with artists like Chuck Close and Richard Estes giving their paintings the precision of a frame of film.

Contemporary artists such as Jordan Casteel, LaToya Ruby Frazier and Aliza Nisenbaum are now using the unvarnished realist approach for honest representations of people and their worlds. Alongside traditional mediums, technology such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence and immersive installations are helping artists create new sensations of realism in art.

​​Find authentic realist paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs.

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Style: Realist
The Great Escape
The Great Escape

The Great Escape

By Raymond Gibby

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Bronze sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and edition number. AP 2/20

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Masked
Masked

Masked

By Bela Bacsi

Located in Pasadena, CA

Provenance Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist Description Masked suggests a sense of mystery and eccentricity, and begs the question: Who is the man behind the mask? ...

Category

2010s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Carrara Marble

Fertility Venus, Bronze Nude Sculpture by Telly Mia
Fertility Venus, Bronze Nude Sculpture by Telly Mia

Fertility Venus, Bronze Nude Sculpture by Telly Mia

By Telly Mia

Located in Long Island City, NY

Artist: Telly Mia Title: Fertility Venus Medium: Bronze Sculpture, signature inscribed Size: 20 in. x 11 in. x 10 in. (50.8 cm x 27.94 cm x 25.4 cm)

Category

20th Century Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Nehemiah 2
Nehemiah 2

Nehemiah 2

By Christopher Slatoff

Located in Pasadena, CA

Provenance Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist Description Slatoff’s sculpture is a biblical reference to the central figure in the book of Nehemiah, which describes a ...

Category

Early 2000s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Double Shot of Wild Turkey
Double Shot of Wild Turkey

Double Shot of Wild Turkey

By Stefan Savides

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. AP #3

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Italian sculptor - 19th century bronze sculpture - Shepherdess with sheep
Italian sculptor - 19th century bronze sculpture - Shepherdess with sheep

Italian sculptor - 19th century bronze sculpture - Shepherdess with sheep

Located in Varmo, IT

An Italian sculptor (19th century) - Shepherdess with sheep. 18 x 18 x h 46 cm. Full figure in finely chased bronze, on a marble base. The sculpture depicts a young shepherdess st...

Category

Late 19th Century Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Sifaka Lemur -original modern wildlife bronze sculpture - contemporary Art
Sifaka Lemur -original modern wildlife bronze sculpture - contemporary Art

Sifaka Lemur -original modern wildlife bronze sculpture - contemporary Art

By Andrzej Szymczyk

Located in London, Chelsea

We offer complimentary worldwide shipping and cover all tariffs and import taxes for this artwork. This exceptional artwork is currently on display and available for sale at Signet C...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Yawning Hippopotamus Bronze EA IV/IV
Yawning Hippopotamus Bronze EA IV/IV

Yawning Hippopotamus Bronze EA IV/IV

By Sophie Martin

Located in Pasadena, CA

Animal sculptor Sophie MARTIN creates from inert clay a whole living animal kingdom. She freely observes the animal and captures and interprets a movement; and places it in nature and real life with a zest of fancy. Without humanizing the model, respecting the uniqueness of each one in its biodiversity. After studying three years of art history at the Ecole du Louvre, it was with her uncle and her aunt veterinarians, that her love for animals truly took shape in the clay; as with the first models animals on the examination table...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

"Bride stealing"
"Bride stealing"

"Bride stealing"

By Katib Mamedov

Located in Edinburgh, GB

This bronze sculpture, entitled ‘The Abduction of the Bride’, depicts a scene from a traditional Caucasian custom: a man abducts a girl to marry her. It all looks as though ‘oh dear,...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Pointer / - The elegance of the hunting dog -
Pointer / - The elegance of the hunting dog -

Pointer / - The elegance of the hunting dog -

Located in Berlin, DE

Anton Büschelberger (1869 Eger - 1934 Dresden), Pointer, around 1930, made by the Karl Ens porcelain manufactory in Volkstedt (Thuringia), model number 2478, 6. Porcelain with underg...

Category

1920s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

"Union", Frederick Hart, Bronze Figurative Sculpture, 19x11x7 in., Woman & Man
"Union", Frederick Hart, Bronze Figurative Sculpture, 19x11x7 in., Woman & Man

"Union", Frederick Hart, Bronze Figurative Sculpture, 19x11x7 in., Woman & Man

By Frederick Hart

Located in Dallas, TX

"Union" by Frederick Hart is a figurative female and male figure bronze sculpture with the edition number 299/350. Inspired by The Creation Sculptures of the Washington National Cathedral...

Category

1990s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

"SAM HOUSTON" HORN CARVING 1936 TEXAS CENTENNIAL AMAZING WORK
"SAM HOUSTON" HORN CARVING 1936 TEXAS CENTENNIAL AMAZING WORK

"SAM HOUSTON" HORN CARVING 1936 TEXAS CENTENNIAL AMAZING WORK

Located in San Antonio, TX

Dan Super "SAM HOUSTON" (1873-1953) Houston Artist Image Size: 3 3/4 inches tall Medium: Carved Horn of Sam Houston to celebrate the Texas Centennial. Texas Centennial 1936 "Sam Houston Pin Cushion Holder" Biography Dan Super (1873-1953) Dan E. Super, Jr. (1873 – 1953) Dan Super had the eye of a sculptor, envisioning and then creating hundreds of objects from the elongated form of a Texas Longhorn’s tusk. At the age of six, Dan Super carved his first drawing into a piece of the horn of a Texas Longhorn. Over the next 56 years, he made utilitarian pieces like pencil cups, pin cushions, and backscratchers, realistic replicas of animals and birds, and imaginative carvings of elegant nudes. While these carvings resemble the traditional art of scrimshaw, carvings from whale bone, we’ve not been able to identify another carver who used the Texas Longhorn as his material. “My work is done with an ordinary pocketknife, hacksaw file and rasp,” Super wrote in 1937. He used the horn in every way conceivable; whole, allowing the shape to define the object he was making, flattened to make mosaic or inlay work. He incised and pierced it and carved in the round. His own hands polished the horn to a sheen. Daniel Super, Jr. was born in Houston on August 22, 1873. His father owned stock years, D. Super and Brothers Co., providing the young Super with ready access to his raw material. Throughout his life, he worked in the businesses key to the identity and success of young, booming Houston, cattle, oil, real estate and rail. In 1896 he married Lula, and took over the family business, expanding it to include a grocery. He closed the company in 1912 and got into the oil business...

Category

1930s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Other Medium

Miniature Double Diver Bronze Sculpture with Gold Leaf, Realist, 2013
Miniature Double Diver Bronze Sculpture with Gold Leaf, Realist, 2013

Miniature Double Diver Bronze Sculpture with Gold Leaf, Realist, 2013

By Carole Feuerman

Located in Aventura, FL

Bronze sculpture with 24K gold leaf caps on granite base. Variant of 48. Artwork in Excellent Condition. Certificate of Authenticity is included. Please do not hesitate to ask us any further questions. All reasonable offers will be considered. About the Artist: Carole A. Feuerman (American, born 1945) is a Hyper-Realist sculptor. Along with artists like Duane Hanson and John DeAndrea...

Category

2010s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze, Gold Leaf

Barn Buddies

Barn Buddies

By Lisa Gordon

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Bronze sculpture inscribed by the Artist with a signature and edition number. 2/25

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Mid Century Italian Carved Wood Monkey by Macabo
Mid Century Italian Carved Wood Monkey by Macabo

Mid Century Italian Carved Wood Monkey by Macabo

Located in Palm Beach, FL

Impressive whimsical vintage walnut wood carving skillfully depicting a wide eyed monkey contemplating a piece of fruit. Signed Macabo Italy on the bottom.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Wood

Untitled Man With Closed Eyes Bronze Sculpture, Realist Style, 1982
Untitled Man With Closed Eyes Bronze Sculpture, Realist Style, 1982

Untitled Man With Closed Eyes Bronze Sculpture, Realist Style, 1982

Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Untitled 1982 Young Man With Closed Eyes Artist signed, and dated. WILLIAM LUDWIG (1935-2011) Education: University of Connecticut, 1957-1961 Hartford Art School, University of Har...

Category

1980s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Prospector's Partner

Prospector's Partner

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Bronze sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 6/30

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

"Ex Nihilo Fragment 6", Frederick Hart, Figurative Bronze Sculpture, 39X23X12 in
"Ex Nihilo Fragment 6", Frederick Hart, Figurative Bronze Sculpture, 39X23X12 in

"Ex Nihilo Fragment 6", Frederick Hart, Figurative Bronze Sculpture, 39X23X12 in

By Frederick Hart

Located in Dallas, TX

"Ex Nihilo Fragment 6" by Frederick Hart is a figurative bronze with the edition of 55/65. Ex Nihilo Fragment No. 6, detail from the full-scale plaster for the final stone sculpture of Ex Nihilo, was commissioned as part of The Creation Sculptures at Washington National Cathedral...

Category

Early 2000s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Muy Cansado Lena

Muy Cansado Lena

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original bronze sculpture by artist Jan Mapes. Edition 1/15.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Otter Urn
Otter Urn

Otter Urn

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original bronze sculpture by artist James Moore. Edition 20/200.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Cat's Cradle

Cat's Cradle

By Bill Starke

Located in Denver, CO

"Cat's Cradle" is a limited edition sculpture created by Bill Starke depicting a figure playing with string. About the artist: Human beings interacting, colliding, cooperating, striving, & achieving are the themes I wish to portray in my sculptures. My observations on the human condition are meant to be both humorous and thought provoking. Bill Starke's "Free Man" is everything that good art should be: technically superb, brilliantly composed, emotionally powerful and visually arresting... like George Stubbs, the 18th century English master...

Category

2010s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Bear Claw Urn
Bear Claw Urn

Bear Claw Urn

By James Moore

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Bronze Urn sculpture inscribed with Artist's signature and edition number. 5/200

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

"Reclining Woman"  Karl Bitter, Reclining Woman with Reddish Patina
"Reclining Woman"  Karl Bitter, Reclining Woman with Reddish Patina

"Reclining Woman" Karl Bitter, Reclining Woman with Reddish Patina

Located in New York, NY

Karl Bitter Reclining Woman, 1897 Signed: Bitter 97 Stamped: GORHAM M F G CO. Bronze 10.25 x 10.25 x 4 inches Initially from Vienna, Karl Bitter first studied art at the city’s Kunstgewerbeschule and the Kunstakademie before being drafted into the Austrian army. He deserted his position in the military while on leave, and departed for New York City where he would discover considerable success. Early on, he won a competition for the Astor memorial bronze gates at Trinity Church, which awarded him enough capital to open his own studio. He went on to execute sculptures of Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson at the Cuyahoga Courthouse in Cleveland; he also created portraits of Jefferson for the state of Missouri and the University of Virginia. These commissions caught the attention of sculptor Richard Morris Hunt (who famously designed the façade of the Metropolitan Museum), earning Bitter the duty of producing the portrait medallions that now appear near the top of the museum’s grand face. Notably, he presented at Chicago’s 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and directed the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo in 1901. Over his career, his artwork became more flexible – his early academy training is easily identifiable within his work, but after moving to America, conventions of Modernism became more prevalent within his sculpture. In addition to many awards, Bitter presided over the National Sculpture Society in 1906-1907, and was a member of the National Institute of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Design, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Architectural League, and the Art Commission, New York. His public work can be found at the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, NC; Gettysburg National Military Park, Gettysburg, PA; Wisconsin State Capitol, Madison, WI; United States Naval Academy...

Category

1890s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

In a Class of His Own

In a Class of His Own

By Raymond Gibby

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 10/25

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Flight
Flight

Flight

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 4/25

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Kingfisher Fugue
Kingfisher Fugue

Kingfisher Fugue

By James Moore

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 9/50

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Hummingbird Spring
Hummingbird Spring

Hummingbird Spring

By James Moore

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 1/30

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Steer Clear

Steer Clear

By Greg Kelsey

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 49/50

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Signature Skull

Signature Skull

By Greg Kelsey

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 38/50

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Beau
Beau

Beau

By Andrea Wilkinson

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze Sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 4/30

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Bronze Hippopotame
Bronze Hippopotame

Bronze Hippopotame

By Sophie Martin

Located in Pasadena, CA

Animal sculptor Sophie MARTIN creates from inert clay a whole living animal kingdom. She freely observes the animal and captures and interprets a movement; and places it in nature a...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Kimiko
Kimiko

Kimiko

By Gary Alsum

Located in Loveland, CO

Kimiko by Gary Alsum Bronze ed/7, 54x19x20", comes with 3" high, 24" diameter sandstone round base as pictured in the garden images. Young woman in traditional attire holding an fan. Ideal scale for a garden setting. ABOUT THE ARTIST: Taking the knowledge passed on from artists such as Fritz White, Glenna Goodacre...

Category

Early 2000s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Sandstone, Bronze

A la fontaine
A la fontaine

A la fontaine

By Émile Nestor Joseph Carlier 1

Located in Mc Lean, VA

Nice 19th-century cast with rich, brown patina by French sculptor Emile-Joseph-Nestor Carlier. Carlier frequently created large, multi-figural group sculptures. These are dramatic an...

Category

Late 19th Century Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Secret Omen

Secret Omen

By Sandy Scott

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 1/35

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

A Hare Raising Event

A Hare Raising Event

By Christine Knapp

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Bronze sculpture inscribed by the Artist with a signature and edition number. 2/25

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Squirrel on Corn

Squirrel on Corn

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 7/75

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

A Figurative Impressionist Bronze Metal Sculpture, "Just A Minute"

A Figurative Impressionist Bronze Metal Sculpture, "Just A Minute"

Located in San Diego, CA

A one of a kind 15x15x9 Figurative Impressionist Bronze Metal Sculpture. A certificate of authenticity will be provided upon its purchase or delivery. Manuelita Brown is a San Dieg...

Category

2010s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Untitled Man With Closed Eyes Bronze Sculpture, Realist Style, 1989
Untitled Man With Closed Eyes Bronze Sculpture, Realist Style, 1989

Untitled Man With Closed Eyes Bronze Sculpture, Realist Style, 1989

Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL

Untitled 1989 Man With Closed Eyes Bronze on wooden base WILLIAM LUDWIG (1935-2011) Education: University of Connecticut, 1957-1961 Hartford Art School, University of Hartford, 1961-...

Category

1980s Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Mother and Child - 20th Century British terracotta figure by Lady Muriel Wheeler
Mother and Child - 20th Century British terracotta figure by Lady Muriel Wheeler

Mother and Child - 20th Century British terracotta figure by Lady Muriel Wheeler

By Lady Muriel Wheeler

Located in London, GB

LADY MURIEL WHEELER, PSWA (1888-1979) Mother and Baby Signed and indistinctly dated 19-4 Terracotta on wooden base 44 cm., 17 ¼ in. high including base Muriel Bourne was born in ...

Category

Early 20th Century Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Terracotta

Cheetah Chase
Cheetah Chase

Cheetah Chase

By Sandy Scott

Located in Colorado Springs, CO

Original Bronze sculpture inscribed with the Artist's signature and an edition number. 1/25

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Realist figurative sculptures for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Realist figurative sculptures available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add figurative sculptures created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, orange, pink and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Frederick Hart, Gary Alsum, SOPHIE MARTIN, and W Stanley Proctor. Frequently made by artists working with Metal, and Bronze and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Realist figurative sculptures, so small editions measuring 1 inches across are also available. Prices for figurative sculptures made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $550 and tops out at $935,000, while the average work sells for $7,833.