Realism: In the arts, the accurate, detailed, unembellished depiction of nature or of contemporary life. Realism rejects imaginative idealization in favour of a close observation of outward appearances. As such, realism in its broad sense has comprised many artistic currents in different civilizations. In the visual arts, for example, realism can be found in ancient Hellenistic Greek sculptures accurately portraying boxers and decrepit old women. The works of such 17th-century painters as Caravaggio, the Dutch genre painters, the Spanish painters José de Ribera, Diego Velázquez, and Francisco de Zurbarán, and the Le Nain brothers in France are realist in approach. The works of the 18th-century English novelists Daniel Defoe, Henry Fielding, and Tobias Smollett may also be called realistic. -Nicholas Pioch. Realism, art, realist art, realist paintings: in art, broadly, an unembellished rendering of natural forms. Specifically, the term refers to the mid-19th-cent. movement against French academicism. Realist painters portrayed ugly or commonplace subjects without idealization. Major realists include COURBET, J.F. MILLET, and DAUMIER. See also PHOTOREALISM. Realism (art and literature), attempt to describe human behavior and surroundings or to represent figures and objects exactly as they act or appear in life. The term is generally restricted to a movement that began in the mid-19th century, in reaction to the highly subjective approach of romanticism. The term realist in art is frequently used to describe works depicting scenes of humble life, and it implies a criticism of social conditions. The work of French artists Gustave Courbet, Honoré Daumier, and Jean François Millet has been described as social realism. American realist painters include William Sidney Mount, Anthony D'Elia and Thomas Eakins. Realist literature is defined as fiction produced in Europe and the United States from about 1840 until the 1890s. Realists included French writers Gustave Flaubert and Guy de Maupassant, Russian author Anton Chekhov, English novelist George Eliot, American writers Mark Twain and William Dean Howells, and American expatriate novelist Henry James. The history of Western European art records an uncompromising pursuit of excellence. The masters of each generation sought to perfect their art, then bequeathed their accumulated knowledge and expertise to the next generation. The accomplishments of one generation often set new standards of excellence for the next. Throughout the centuries there existed a generally recognized artistic standard. To differentiate this standard or tradition of excellence from others, we call it classical realism. Classical realism encompasses the highest principles of traditional representational art from the ancient Greeks to the present day. The principles of realism include fine drawing, balanced design, harmonious color and skillful craftsmanship. At its foundation is the representation of the visible world as seen through the trained eye of the artist (representational art). For centuries, the artist's craft and the ability to
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STUDIO FIGURE I (DETAIL) BY JAMES ADKINS
JAMES
ADKINS
FOG FOREST (DETAIL) BY JANICE ANTHONY
JANICE
ANTHONY
HURON LIGHTSHIP (DETAIL) BY GEORGE ATKINSON
GEORGE
ATKINSON
GARDEN IN FEBRUARY BY ELIZA AUTH
ELIZA
AUTH
WOODS IN SPRING BY THERESA BARTOL
THERESA
BARTOL
PATH TO SILVER LAKE (DETAIL) BY BILL BARTON
BILL
BARTON
GOLDEN RETRIEVER BY ERIC BERG
ERIC
BERG
IN PARADISE - THE ROSE (DETAIL) BY MARTY CAREY
MARTY
CAREY
DAYBREAK NEAR SCHOODIC POINT (DETAIL) BY ARTHUR CHARTOW
ARTHUR
CHARTOW
WINDHAM HIGH PEAK (DETAIL) BY JAMES CRAMER
JAMES
CRAMER
THE CHEYENNE DINER (DETAIL) BY FRED DANZIGER
FRED
DANZIGER
LOWERING SKY (DETAIL) BY WILLIAM DUNLAP
WILLIAM
DUNLAP
RESPITE ON ARTIST'S ROCK (DETAIL) BY CAROLYN EDLUND
CAROLYN
EDLUND
A PERFECT DAY IN FRENCHTOWN BY Judy Evans
JUDY
EVANS
CHAMELION BY AILENE FIELDS
AILENE
FIELDS
WATCH HILL LIGHTHOUSE (DETAIL) BY WILLIAM GILROY
WILLIAM
GILROY
PEONIES (DETAIL) BY JACQUELINE GNOTT
JACQUELINE
GNOTT
3 APPLES ON CLOTH (DETAIL) BY JOE HAMEISTER
JOE
HAMEISTER
GREEN CONVERGENCE (DETAIL) BY ROBERT HEISCHMAN
ROBERT
HEISCHMAN
VIEW FROM PEACE HILL (DETAIL) BY TOM JONES
TOM
JONES
SUNFLOWERS IN ROSEVILLE VASE (DETAIL) BY CURTIS KELLY
CURTIS
KELLY
MID WINTER'S EVENING (DETAIL) BY GLENN KESSLER
GLENN
KESSLER
Morningside (DETAIL) BY JANET LAIRD-LAGASSEE
JANET
LAIRD-LAGASSEE
Fluttering (DETAIL) BY VICTOR LEGER
VICTOR
LEGER
EARLY EVENING (DETAIL) BY DOUG MARTENSON
DOUG
MARTENSON
SCULL LAUNCHING DOCK (DETAIL) BY CHRIS MCHENRY
CHRIS
MCHENRY
SCULL LAUNCHING DOCK (DETAIL) BY CHRIS MCHENRY
KIMBERLY
MEUSE
SCULL LAUNCHING DOCK (DETAIL) BY CHRIS MCHENRY
NANCY BEA
MILLER
POP GOES HOT PINK (DETAIL) BY WILLIAM L. HANEY
MISC
Washington, View from Arlington House (DETAIL) BY JOHN MORRELL
JOHN
MORRELL
QUADRO #3 (DETAIL) BY JAMES MULLEN
JAMES
MULLEN
WHITE PELICANS (DETAIL) BY MARY LOUISE O'SULLIVAN
MARY
LOUISE
O'SULLIVAN
DIVERSITY (DETAIL) BY TOM OUELLETTE
TOM
OUELLETTE
THREE BOSC PAIRS (DETAIL) BY JEREMIAH PATTERSON
NICK
PATTEN
THREE BOSC PAIRS (DETAIL) BY JEREMIAH PATTERSON
JEREMIAH
PATTERSON
DAYBREAK CLOUDS (DETAIL) BY PETER POLITES
PETER
POLITES
CLOUDS OVER LONGCOVE (DETAIL) BY GILBERT RIOU
GILBERT
RIOU
SUNFLOWER (DETAIL) BY JEANNE ROVEGNO
JEANNE
ROVEGNO
APPROACHING HORSESHOE (DETAIL) BY MICHAEL SCHWEIGART
MICHAEL
SCHWEIGART
CUTCHOGUE HARBOUR (DETAIL) BY ROBERT SCUDELLARI
ROBERT
SCUDELLARI
SUNFLOWERS #2 BY SONYA SKLAROFF
SONYA
SKLAROFF
LOOKING NORTH FROM MT TAM (DETAIL) BY WILLIAM M. SULLIVAN
WILLIAM M.
SULLIVAN
DOVE AND EGGPLANTS (DETAIL) BY STEPHEN TANIS
STEPHEN
TANIS
High Falls Creek (Dusk) (DETAIL) BY DEAN F. THOMAS
DEAN F.
THOMAS
ADIRONDACK TRANSITION (DETAIL) BY ROBERT VAN METER
ROBERT
VAN METER
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