France · 1840 – 1890

Realism

Realism represents everyday life with objective fidelity, focusing on the working classes and social reality.

Realism emerged in France in the 1840s as a reaction against Romanticism and Neoclassicism. Its representatives rejected historical, mythological or religious subjects and focused on the objective, unidealized representation of contemporary life, including the working classes and peasants as worthy protagonists of art. Gustave Courbet was its central figure. Realism laid the groundwork for Naturalism and Impressionism.

Main characteristics

  • ●Objective representation of contemporary reality
  • ●Prominence of the working and peasant classes
  • ●Rejection of idealization and fantasy
  • ●Refined technique in service of verisimilitude
  • ●Social and political commitment of artists

Key works

  • A Burial at Ornans – Courbet
  • The Angelus – Millet
  • The Stone Breakers – Courbet

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