Neo Realism Painting

On 1stDibs, you can find the most appropriate neo realism painting for your needs in our varied inventory. Find modern versions now, or shop for modern creations for a more modern example of these cherished works. Finding the perfect neo realism painting may mean sifting through those created during different time periods — you can find an early version that dates to the 18th Century and a newer variation that were made as recently as the 21st Century. If you’re looking to add a neo realism painting to create new energy in an otherwise neutral space in your home, you can find a work on 1stDibs that features elements of gray, brown, black, blue and more. There have been many interesting neo realism painting examples over the years, but those made by Richard Britell, Romeo Villalva Tabuena, Bill Sullivan, Tom Bennett and Michael Ward are often thought to be among the most thought-provoking. These artworks were handmade with extraordinary care, with artists most often working in paint, oil paint and fabric.

A neo realism painting can differ in price owing to various characteristics — the average selling price for items in our inventory is $2,648, while the lowest priced sells for $66 and the highest can go for as much as $450,000.

A resurgence of interest in Expressionism, Pop art, Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism and other movements gained steam among artists of the 1970s and ’80s, in part as a reaction to the austerity of the prevailing minimalism and Conceptual art of the era. A decadent, bold and brash art style called Neo-Expressionism saw painters returning to figural representation, creating highly textured works that were imbued with intensely personal narratives.

Neo-Expressionist paintings are sensuous in nature and highly subjective in meaning. Expressive brushwork, highly pigmented colors and layered forms and materials lent sculptural attributes to the work and were used to depict symbolic narratives from history, mythology and the artist’s personal experience. 

Prominent figures such as Jean-Michel Basquiat led the Neo-Expressionist movement in the United States with paintings and prints that were raw, emotional and often violent in nature. In Germany, Die Neuen Wilden (the “New Fauves”) was the name given to a group of postwar artists that included the likes of sculptor Georg Baselitz and Gerhard Richter, a painter and photographer who explored the possibilities of both abstraction and realism, sometimes in a single piece. The work of the New Fauves — labeled as such for its return to Fauvism’s textured brushwork and use of vibrant colors — shares commonalities with Neo-Expressionism, and Baselitz was a pioneer of the movement in Europe. In addition, Willem de Kooning’s pulsating action paintings and Julian Schnabel’s experimentation with the materiality of paintings also took shape during this period.

“I was trying to make paintings different from the paintings that I saw a lot of at the time, which were mostly minimal, and they were highbrow and alienating, and I wanted to make very direct paintings that most people would feel the emotion behind when they saw them,” said Basquiat. 

Neo-Expressionism generated some polarizing opinions, with some celebrating the revival of personal subjectivity in art while others criticizing the movement for being too commercially driven and nostalgic. But most experts agree that Neo-Expressionism was a huge commercial success and culturally impactful, paving the way for the postmodern work of artists like Richter and Sigmar Polke. 

Find original Neo-Expressionist paintings, prints, mixed-media works and other art on 1stDibs.