Realism

c. 1840–1880

Realism depicted ordinary life without idealization. Artists focused on everyday people and social conditions. Historical and mythological subjects were rejected. Art became socially engaged and observational.

Poor People Gathering Coal at an Exhausted Mine

Nikolay Kasatkin

1894

Workers scavenge in bleak conditions, a stark slice of social realism.

The Laundress

Honore Daumier

1863

A tired woman climbs with child and bundle—sympathy for the urban poor.

The Iron-Rolling Mill

Adolph Menzel

1872–1875

Workers labor in heat and sparks, a monumental portrait of industry.

Roses in a Champagne Flute

Henri Fantin Latour

1873

Delicate blossoms in precise light, turning simple flowers into quiet luxury.

The Gleaners

Jean Francois Millet

1857

Three peasant women gather leftovers from the harvest, dignifying rural labor.

Sleep

Gustave Courbet

1866

Two entwined women rest, painted with sensuous realism.

The Artist's Studio

Gustave Courbet

1855

A large self-portrait at the center of friends, patrons, and everyday people—“a real allegory.”

Olympia

Edouard Manet

1863

A confrontational nude stares back, modernizing the classical Venus with frank directness.