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.
$7,500
Marc Sijan Hyperrealist Contemporary Plaster Sculpture Woman and Champagne Glass
By Marc Sijan
Located in Surfside, FL
Marc Sijan (American, born 1946) Hyper realistic wall sculpture. titled and dated on verso "Champagne Glass" 1986 Limited edition number 14/95. Features a Art Deco style girl in ...
Acrylic Polymer, Glass, Plaster
Noche Crist Nude Goddess Sculpture
Located in Washington, DC
One of a kind Goddess sculpture by Noche Crist (1909-2004). Noche Crist was an American artist born in Romania. Sculpture is made from polyester res...
Acrylic Polymer
$39,000
H 24 in W 17 in D 11 in
"Pioneer Family" WPA American Modernism Plaster Maquette Realism 20th Century
Located in New York, NY
"Pioneer Family," 23 1/2 x 16 1/4 x 10 3/4 inPlaster. c. 1927. Unsigned. Realism The Smithsonian has a cast of this sculpture in its collection. Pictured on the cover of “The Sculpt...
Plaster
Noche Crist Goddess Sculpture
Located in Washington, DC
Wonderful and one of a kind nude sculpture by Noche Crist (1909-2004). Sculpture is made from polyester resin. Catalogue of a postumous retrospective in 2008 at the American Universi...
Acrylic Polymer
$4,800Sale Price|20% Off
H 12.5 in W 9 in D 5 in
Seated Nude Woman Sculpture, Painted Plaster, Inscribed, Early 20th Century
Located in Beachwood, OH
William Zorach (American, 1887-1966) Seated Woman Painted plaster Inscribed underside "V" 12.5 x 9 x 5 inches Provenance: The Tatti Family Collection Bill Zorach was born in Lithuan...
Plaster
$705
H 5.91 in W 2.76 in D 3.15 in
Mom Rat With Babies - Unique Handmade Glazed Ceramics Sculpture, Animals
Located in Hallein, AT
The sculpture is signed below. Monika Zadurska-Bielak, Graduated from the studio of Prof. Franciszek Duszeńko at the Faculty of Sculpture of the Acade...
Ceramic
$1,760Sale Price|20% Off
H 14 in W 7 in D 5.875 in
Woman and Child, Early 20th Century Ceramic, Female Cleveland School Artist
Located in Beachwood, OH
Thelma Frazier Winter (American, 1903-1977) Woman and Child, c. 1935 Glazed stoneware, painted plaster 14 x 7 x 5.875 inches Thelma Frazier Wint...
Stoneware, Plaster, Glaze
Arlen Reclining
Located in London, GB
Bronze Numbered 4/10 21cm × 26cm × 57cm Ian Rank-Broadley is one of the foremost sculptors working today. His effigy of the late Queen Elizabeth II appears on all UK and Commonwealt...
Bronze
$24,500
H 38 in W 26 in D 45 in
Lifesize Plaster Cast Sculpture of The Wrestlers, Antique Nude Art
By Brussels Atelier de Moulages
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Antique Grand Tour Plaster Cast after Antonio Canova – Life-Size Figural Group This impressive, life-size antique plaster cast represents one of t...
Plaster
$960Sale Price|20% Off
H 9 in W 8 in D 4 in
Zinnia, early 20th century sculpture of nude bust of woman, Cleveland School
Located in Beachwood, OH
Walter Sinz (American, 1881-1966) Zinnia, c. 1930 Plaster Signed on base 9 x 8 x 4 inches Walter A. Sinz was an American sculptor born in Cleveland, Ohio on July 13, 1881. Sinz’s fa...
Plaster
$9,500
H 51 in W 15 in D 11 in
Marsyas Life-Size Plaster Cast Sculpture, 19th Century, Good Condition
By Brussels Atelier de Moulages
Located in Palm Beach, FL
A compelling life-size plaster cast depicting Marsyas, the ill-fated satyr of Greek mythology renowned for his mastery of the aulos. According to classical legend, Marsyas dared chal...
Plaster
$823
H 11.03 in W 3.94 in D 6.11 in
A Rat With A Tit - Unique Handmade Glazed Ceramics Sculpture, Animals Portrait
Located in Hallein, AT
The sculpture is signed below. Monika Zadurska-Bielak, Graduated from the studio of Prof. Franciszek Duszeńko at the Faculty of Sculpture of the Acade...
Ceramic
Man with Arms Raised
Located in London, GB
Bronze Numbered 1/10 32cm × 10cm × 10cm (incl. base) Ian Rank-Broadley is one of the foremost sculptors working today. His effigy of the late Queen Elizabeth II appears on all UK an...
Bronze
Sold
H 35 in W 68 in D 3 in
Photo Realist Trompe L'Oeil Nude Male Portrait Painting & Sculpture Shozo Nagano
Located in Buffalo, NY
Vintage trompe l'oeil nude male figure by Shozo Nagano 1928-2007. Oil on canvas, lain around board sculpture, circa 1986. Signed on verso.
Canvas, Oil