Gustave Courbet - The Stonebreakers - WGA05457

Realism was an

artistic movement An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a specific art philosophy or goal, followed by a group of artists during a specific period of time, (usually a few months, years or decades) or, at least, with the heyday of the movement defined ...

that emerged in France in the 1840s. Realists rejected

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

, which had dominated French literature and art since the early 19th century. The artist

Gustave Courbet Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet ( ; ; ; 10 June 1819 – 31 December 1877) was a French painter who led the Realism movement in 19th-century French painting. Committed to painting only what he could see, he rejected academic convention and the ...

, the original proponent of Realism, sought to portray real and typical contemporary people and situations with truth and accuracy, not avoiding unpleasant or sordid aspects of life. Realism revolted against the exotic subject matter, exaggerated emotionalism, and the drama of the Romantic movement, often focusing on unidealized subjects and events that were previously rejected in artwork. Realist works depicted people of all

social classes A social class or social stratum is a grouping of people into a set of hierarchical social categories, the most common being the working class and the capitalist class. Membership of a social class can for example be dependent on education, ...

in situations that arise in ordinary life, and often reflected the changes brought by the Industrial and

Commercial Revolution In European history, the commercial revolution saw the development of a European economy – based on trade – which began in the 11th century AD and operated until the advent of the Industrial Revolution in the mid-18th century. Beginning wit ...

s. Realism was primarily concerned with how things appeared to the eye, rather than containing ideal representations of the world. Realism spread to other countries, maintaining similar principles with some differences arising from the artistic background of the individual countries and artists.

Historical context

Scholars theorize that Realism was influenced by multiple intersecting societal conditions in the mid-1800s, including the suffrage movement, urban immigration, social class tensions, and economic difficulties caused by the Industrial and Commercial Revolutions. In 1848-49, there were multiple uprisings in Europe including in France, the German states, the Italian states, Hungary, and Poland. Courbet's first Realist works in 1849 and later artworks often depicted poor and working-class peoples, which were not the focus of artists previously, as Romantic art portrayed a beautiful and idealized world. This social component of Realism is demonstrated in varying degrees across Realism in different countries.

Beginnings of Realism in France

The Realist movement began in the mid-19th century as a reaction to

and

History painting History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and B ...

. In favor of depictions of 'real' life, the Realist painters used common laborers, and ordinary people in ordinary surroundings engaged in real activities as subjects for their works. The chief exponents of Realism in France were

, Jean-François Millet,

Honoré Daumier Honoré-Victorin Daumier (; February 26, 1808 – February 10 or 11, 1879) was a French painter, sculptor, and printmaker, whose many works offer commentary on the social and political life in France, from the July Revolution, Revolution of 1830 ...

, and

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot ( , , ; 16 July 1796 – 22 February 1875), or simply Camille Corot, was a French Landscape art, landscape and Portraitist, portrait painter as well as a printmaking, printmaker in etching. A pivotal figure in ...

Jules Bastien-Lepage Jules Bastien-Lepage (1 November 1848 – 10 December 1884) was a French painter closely associated with the beginning of naturalism, an artistic style that grew out of the Realist movement and paved the way for the development of impressioni ...

is closely associated with the beginning of '' Naturalism'', an artistic style that emerged from the later phase of the Realist movement and heralded the arrival of

Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

.Fry, Roger. 1920. "Vision and Design." London: Chatto & Windus. "An Essay in Æsthetics." 11–24. Accessed online on 13 March 2012 at The Realism art movement coincided with the naturalist literature movement of

Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, ; ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of Naturalism (literature), naturalism, and an important contributor to ...

Honoré de Balzac Honoré de Balzac ( , more commonly ; ; born Honoré Balzac; 20 May 1799 – 18 August 1850) was a French novelist and playwright. The novel sequence ''La Comédie humaine'', which presents a panorama of post-Napoleonic French life, is ...

, and

Gustave Flaubert Gustave Flaubert ( , ; ; 12 December 1821 – 8 May 1880) was a French novelist. He has been considered the leading exponent of literary realism in his country and abroad. According to the literary theorist Kornelije Kvas, "in Flaubert, realis ...

.Nineteenth-Century French Realism , Essay , Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History , The Metropolitan Museum of Art
/ref> Courbet was the leading proponent of Realism and he challenged the popular

history painting History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and B ...

that was favored at the state-sponsored art academy. His paintings A Burial at Ornans and The Stonebreakers depict ordinary people and were done on huge canvases that would typically be used for history paintings.Nineteenth-Century French Realism , Essay , Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History , The Metropolitan Museum of Art
/ref> Although Courbet's early works emulated the sophisticated manner of Old Masters such as

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

and

Titian Tiziano Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), Latinized as Titianus, hence known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian Renaissance painter, the most important artist of Renaissance Venetian painting. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno. Ti ...

, after 1848 he adopted a boldly inelegant style inspired by

popular print Popular prints is a term for printing, printed images of generally low artistic quality which were sold cheaply in Europe and later the New World from the 15th to 18th centuries, often with text as well as images. They were some of the earliest e ...

s, shop signs, and other work of folk artisans. In ''The Stonebreakers'', his first painting to create a controversy, Courbet eschewed the pastoral tradition of representing human subjects in harmony with nature. Rather, he depicted two men juxtaposed against a charmless, stony roadside. The concealment of their faces emphasizes the dehumanizing nature of their monotonous, repetitive labor. File:Gustave Courbet - A Burial at Ornans - Google Art Project 2.jpg,

, '' A Burial At Ornans'', 1849 File:Jean-François Millet - Gleaners - Google Art Project.jpg, Jean-François Millet, '' The Gleaners'', 1857 File:Honoré Daumier (French, Marseilles 1808–1879 Valmondois) - The Third-Class Carriage - Google Art Project.jpg,

, '' The Third Class Carriage'', 1862–1864 File:Gustave Courbet 031.jpg,

, '' After Dinner at Ornans'', 1849 File:Jean-François Millet - The Sower - Google Art Project.jpg, Jean-François Millet, '' The Sower'', 1850 File:The Sleepers by Gustave Courbet.jpg,

, (''Sleep''), 1866, Petit Palais, Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris File:Young Girl Reading by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot c1868.jpg,

, ''Young Girl Reading'', 1868,

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art is an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of charge, the museum was privately established in ...

File:Edouard Manet 025.jpg,

Édouard Manet Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French Modernism, modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism (art movement), R ...

, ''Breakfast in the Studio (the Black Jacket)'', New Pinakothek,

Munich, Germany Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, 1868 File:Jean-François Millet - A Norman Milkmaid at Gréville - Google Art Project.jpg, Jean-François Millet, ''A Norman Milkmaid at Gréville'', 1871 File:Jules Bastien-Lepage - October - Google Art Project.jpg,

, ''

October October is the tenth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. The eighth month in the old calendar of Romulus , October retained its name (from Latin and Greek ''ôctō'' meaning "eight") after Januar ...

'', 1878,

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and list of most visited art museums in the world, most visited art mu ...

File:The Song of the Lark (Jules Breton, 1884).jpg, Jules Breton, ''The Song of the Lark'', 1884 File:Brooklyn Museum - Fin du travail (The End of the Working Day) - Jules Breton.jpg, Jules Breton, ''The End of the Working Day'', 1886–87

Spread abroad

The French Realist movement had stylistic and ideological equivalents in other Western countries, developing somewhat later. The Realist movement in France was characterized by a spirit of rebellion against powerful official support for history painting and the desire to paint the world as it really is instead of an idealized version. In countries where institutional support of history painting was less dominant, the transition from existing traditions of

genre painting Genre painting (or petit genre) is the painting of genre art, which depicts aspects of everyday life by portraying ordinary people engaged in common activities. One common definition of a genre scene is that it shows figures to whom no identity ca ...

to Realism presented no such schism. The Realist art movement spread as French Realist paintings were exhibited in other European countries and foreign artists were exposed to Realism while studying and traveling in European art centers like Paris and Munich.

Germany

Adolph-Menzel-German-Eisenwalzwerk-Moderne-Cyklopen-The-Iron-Rolling-Mill-Modern-Cyclopes-

Courbet's influence was felt most strongly in Germany, where prominent Realists included Adolph Menzel, Wilhelm Leibl, Wilhelm Trübner, and

Max Liebermann Max Liebermann (20 July 1847 – 8 February 1935) was a German painter and printmaker, and one of the leading proponents of Impressionism in Germany and continental Europe. In addition to his activity as an artist, he also assembled an important ...

. Leibl and several other young German painters met Courbet in 1869 when he visited Munich to exhibit his works and demonstrate his manner of painting from nature. Leibl then spent a year in Paris before returning to Munich and formed the Leibl Circle in 1871 to focus on realism in painting with other artists from the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich. Much of Leibl's body of work is paintings of ordinary people, including '' Three Women in Church'' (1881). Adolf Menzel is another prominent Realist artist, beginning as a lithographer in Berlin and teaching himself to paint in 1840s. Over his career, Menzel painted a variety of subjects, including nature, portraits, and ballrooms filled with people. Two of his most famous works include ''Laying Out the March Dead'' (1848), depicting the civilian coffins after the March Revolution in Berlin, and an industrial factory scene, '' The Iron Rolling Mill'' (1872–75).

Russia

Realism in Russia arose in the 1850s and 1860s. Due to dissatisfaction with the Academy and the Czar, many art students left the school and began traveling exhibitions, painting peasants and rural life in the countryside, becoming known as the ''

Peredvizhniki Peredvizhniki (, ), often called The Wanderers or The Itinerants in English, were a group of Russian realism (arts), realist artists who formed an artists' cooperative in protest of academic restrictions; it evolved into the ''Society for Trave ...

'' (the Travelers, Wanderers, Itinerants). Some of these Travelers include genre artist Vasily Perov,

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or human-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes th ...

artists Ivan Shishkin, Alexei Savrasov, and Arkhip Kuindzhi, portraitist Ivan Kramskoy, and historical artist

Vasily Surikov Vasily Ivanovich Surikov (; 24 January 1848 – 19 March 1916) was a Russian Realism (arts), realist history painter. Many of his works have become familiar to the general public through their use as illustrations. Biography He was born to an ...

. Some of the most well-known of the Russian Realists are

Ilya Repin Ilya Yefimovich Repin ( – 29 September 1930) was a Russian painter, born in what is today Ukraine. He became one of the most renowned artists in Russian Empire, Russia in the 19th century. His major works include ''Barge Haulers on the Volga' ...

, for his paintings of peasants like Barge Haulers on the Volga (1870–73) and themes of revolution, and Vassili Vereschagin, for this art depicting warfare and his travels in India.

Italy

In Italy, the

Macchiaioli The Macchiaioli () were a group of Italian painters active in Tuscany in the second half of the nineteenth century. They strayed from antiquated conventions taught by the Italian art academies, and did much of their painting outdoors in order ...

artist group formed between 1853 and 1860, influenced by the Realism art style when some of the members traveled to Paris. The Macchiaioli rejected the formalities of the Florentine Accademia di Belle Arti, instead painting Realist scenes of rural and urban life. When not painting in the Tuscan countryside, some members spent time in Florence and at the Caffé Michelangiolo, a common meeting place for thinkers and artists in the mid-19th century. The Macchiaioli also were involved with the Italian unification movement, the ''

Risorgimento The unification of Italy ( ), also known as the Risorgimento (; ), was the 19th century political and social movement that in 1861 ended in the annexation of various states of the Italian peninsula and its outlying isles to the Kingdom of ...

.'' Originally called the ''Effettisti'' (''effet:'' French for light effects), for their attention to light and shading in painting, they adopted their name after a critic called them ''macchia'', meaning "spot" and "stain." Though considered Realist, their art style has drawn comparisons to the brightness of

and the attention to light as with the Impressionists. The Macchiaioli's paintings include an array of rural landscapes and peasants, urban scenes and laborers, and battle paintings. Some of the Macchiaioli artists include Giovanni Fattori, Serafino De Tivoli, Silvestro Lega, and Telemaco Signorini.

The Netherlands

The Hague School was a group of Realist artists based in The Hague, Netherlands between 1860 and 1900, influenced by the Barbizon School of landscapes paintings, French naturalism and realism, and themes from the 17th century Dutch masters. It's also nicknamed the 'Grey School' for heavy use of grey tones in many of their paintings. Similarly to the French Realists, they disregarded Romanticism and objectively painted the ordinary, though with less focus on human plights. Willem Roelofs and Anton Mauve painted rural landscapes, Hendrick Willem Mesdag is known for seascapes and fishing boats, and Jacob Maris painted villages and waterways. Of all the work in the Hague School, scholars consider Jozef Israëls's Realist paintings to be the most comparable to Gustave Courbet's and Jean-Francois Millet's work, often depicting peasants and laboring.

Vincent Van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. In just over a decade, he created approximately 2,100 artworks ...

was instructed by Mauve and originally painted in the Realist style until he visited Paris in 1886 and was influenced by

Impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

artworks.

United Kingdom

Sir Hubert von Herkomer - Eventide- A Scene at the Westminster Union - Google Art Project

Hubert von Herkomer Sir Hubert von Herkomer (born as Hubert Herkomer; 26 May 1849 – 31 March 1914) was a Bavarian-born British painter, pioneering film-director, and composer. Though a very successful portrait artist, especially of men, he is mainly remembered fo ...

Luke Fildes Sir Samuel Luke Fildes (3 October 1843 – 28 February 1927) was a British painter and illustrator born in Liverpool and trained at the Royal College of Art, South Kensington and Royal Academy Schools. He was the grandson of the political act ...

, and Frank Holl comprised the unofficial British social realism school starting in the 1870s. They worked together at ''

The Graphic ''The Graphic'' was a British weekly illustrated newspaper, first published on 4 December 1869 by William Luson Thomas's company, Illustrated Newspapers Ltd with Thomas's brother, Lewis Samuel Thomas, as a co-founder. The Graphic was set up as ...

'' from 1872-1876, producing woodcut images for the illustrated newspaper, drawing attention to social issues and poverty in the United Kingdom. The German-born Herkomer admired Menzel's woodcut prints and artwork, which show influence in Herkomer's prints for ''The Graphic''. After their early career in prints, Herkomer, Fildes, and Holl moved to paintings, portraying objective depictions of poor and laboring people while also conversely, painting portraits for British nobility. Active a decade earlier, Frederick Walker had a similar trajectory from printing to Realist painting and was influential on Herkomer's work and other British artists in the later 19th century. Despite being an original tenant of the

Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (PRB), later known as the Pre-Raphaelites, was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossett ...

, modern scholars are unconvinced that they can be called Realists. Like the French and Russian Realists, the Pre-Raphaelites rejected the academy in the mid-1800s and sought to objectively portray nature, but it's argued their artwork appears more emotional and reminiscent of Romanticism and the Nazarene movement. Later in his career, the Pre-Raphaelite Ford Maddox Brown's work was more traditionally Realist, as exemplified in

Work Work may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community ** Manual labour, physical work done by humans ** House work, housework, or homemaking ** Working animal, an ani ...

(1855, 1863) and The Last of England (1852-5).

United States

Realism influenced American artists studying in Paris and Munich in the 1860s and 1870s. Two early American Realists, Winslow Homer and

Thomas Eakins Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins (; July 25, 1844 – June 25, 1916) was an American Realism (visual arts), realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator. He is widely acknowledged to be one of the most important American artist ...

, spent time in Paris in 1867 and 1866–69, respectively. Homer's initial artwork consisted of Civil War camp and peasant paintings in the Realist style, though he transitioned to a more Romantic style later in life, depicting coastal cities and nature. Eakins worked on Realist style portraits and outside scenes, especially rowers on the water. American artists studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich in the 1870s were taught by Karl von Piloty, who was proponent of Realism, but applied to history painting. These students included

Frank Duveneck Frank Duveneck (né Decker; October 9, 1848 – January 3, 1919) was an American figure and portrait painter. Early life Duveneck was born in Covington, Kentucky, the son of German immigrant Bernhard Decker. Decker died in a cholera epidemic whe ...

, William Merritt Chase, and

Frank Currier Frank Currier (September 4, 1857 – April 22, 1928) was an American film and stage actor and director of the silent era. Career Similar to Theodore Roberts, Kate Lester, Ida Waterman, and William H. Crane, Currier had a long and succe ...

, who were also members of the Realist Leibl Circle. A later wave of American Realism occurred with the Ashcan School in New York City in the 1890s, depicting urban scenes and laborers in their artwork. Their leader,

Robert Henri Robert Henri (; June 24, 1865 – July 12, 1929) was an American painter and teacher. As a young man, he studied in Paris, where he identified strongly with the Impressionists, and determined to lead an even more dramatic revolt against A ...

, attended the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art in 1886, where the teaching was heavily influenced by Thomas Eakins' Realist style, though Eakins was forced to resign just prior to Henri starting. After three years in Paris, he returned to the US and settled in New York, actively working against the mainstream academy and the Impressionist art movement. Other Realist members of the group include

John Sloan John French Sloan (August 2, 1871 – September 7, 1951) was an American painter and etcher. He is considered to be one of the founders of the Ashcan school of American art. He was also a member of the group known as The Eight (Ashcan School), T ...

, William Glackens, Everett Shinn, and George Luks. Similarly to Menzel and the British social Realists, all four also began their careers as newspaper print illustrators.

Gallery

File:Illarion Michajlowitsch Prjanischnikow 002.jpg, Illarion Pryanishnikov, ''Jokers (1865). Gostiny Dvor in Moscow'' File:Konstantin Apollonowitsch Sawizkij 001.jpg,

Konstantin Savitsky Konstantin Apollonovich Savitsky (; 25 May 1844 — 31 January 1905) was a Russian Realism (art movement), realist painter born in the city of Taganrog in the village Frankovka or Baronovka, named after former governor Otto Pfeilizer-Frank. Toda ...

, ''Repairing the Railway (''1874) File:Ivan Shishkin - Рожь - Google Art Project.jpg, Ivan Shishkin, '' A Rye Field'' (1878) File:Wilhelm Maria Hubertus Leibl 007.jpg, Wilhelm Leibl, ''The Village Politicians'' (1877) File:1880 Leibl Drei Frauen in der Kirche anagoria.JPG, Wilhelm Leibl, Three Women in Church (1881) File:1876 Trübner Zimmermannsplatz am Weßlinger See anagoria.JPG, Wilhelm Trübner, ''Carpenters on the Bank of Wessling Lake'' (1876) File:Adolph von Menzel - Rear of House and Backyard - WGA15047.jpg, Adolph Menzel, ''Rear of House and Backyard'' (1846) File:Max Liebermann - Gänserupferinnen - Google Art Project.jpg,

, '' Women Plucking Geese'' (1872) File:Le macchiaiole.jpg, Giovanni Fattori, ''Three Peasants in a Field'' (1866–67) File:Silvestro Lega 001.jpg, Silvestro Lega, ''La Pergola'' (1868) File:Morning ride along the beach, by Anton Mauve.jpg, Anton Mauve, Morning Ride on the Beach (1876) File:Hubert von Herkomer - Hard Times.JPG,

, ''Hard Times'' (1885) File:Applicants for Admission to a Casual Ward.jpg,

, '' Applicants for Admission to a Casual Ward'' (1874) File:Frederick Walker - The Vagrants - Google Art Project.jpg, Frederick Walker, The Vagrants (1868) File:Ford Madox Brown - The Last of England - Google Art Project.jpg,

Ford Madox Brown Ford Madox Brown (16 April 1821 – 6 October 1893) was a British painter of moral and historical subjects, notable for his distinctively graphic and often William Hogarth, Hogarthian version of the Pre-Raphaelite style. Arguably, his mos ...

, '' The Last of England'' (1852–1855) File:Winslow Homer - Prisoners from the Front.jpg, Winslow Homer, '' Prisoners from the Front'' (1866) File:Crossstreetsofnewyork.JPG, Everett Shinn, ''Cross Streets of New York''1899).

Corcoran Gallery of Art The Corcoran Gallery of Art is a former art museum in Washington, D.C., that is now the location of the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, a part of the George Washington University. Founded in 1869 by philanthropist William Wilson Corco ...

, Washington DC File:McSorley's Bar 1912 John Sloan.jpg,

John French Sloan John French Sloan (August 2, 1871 – September 7, 1951) was an American painter and etcher. He is considered to be one of the founders of the Ashcan school of American art. He was also a member of the group known as The Eight. He is best know ...

, '' McSorley's Bar'' (1912).

Detroit Institute of Arts The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) is a museum institution located in Midtown Detroit, Michigan. It has list of largest art museums, one of the largest and most significant art collections in the United States. With over 100 galleries, it cove ...

File:Tom Roberts - The Golden Fleece - Google Art Project.jpg,

Tom Roberts Thomas William Roberts (8 March 185614 September 1931) was an English-born Australian artist and a key member of the Heidelberg School art movement, also known as Australian impressionism. After studying in Melbourne, he travelled to Europe i ...

, '' The Golden Fleece'' (1894). File:J Chełmoński - Odlot żurawi (1871).jpg,

Józef Chełmoński Józef Marian Chełmoński (7 November 1849 – 6 April 1914) was a Polish painter of the Realism (art movement), realist school with roots in the historical and social context of the late Romanticism in Poland, Romantic period in partitioned Pol ...

, ''Departing Cranes'' (1871). National Museum in Kraków

References

External links

''19th Century French Realism,'' Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, Metropolitan Museum of Art
{{DEFAULTSORT:Realism (Arts) Art movements French art movements History of art 19th century in art Visual arts theory American art movements Russian art movements