Portrait Painting for Sale
Portraiture is one of the most important subjects in painting. The discipline has changed significantly over time and has a fascinating history.
In antiquity, portraits were exclusively reserved for gods and the most influential people in society. Paintings and statues representing the bodies of the deceased were erected to decorate tombs in Egypt. They weren't realistic but rather had a very standardized way of representing each part of the body.
In contrast to the Egyptians, painters and sculptors in Greece, who had a more in depth knowledge of the human anatomy, were more concerned about realism. Many portrait paintings from this period were done on vases and depicted gods and mythological scenes.
In the Middle Ages, most portraits paintings were commissioned and featuring the most important people of the time; they were painted into religious scenes to emphasize their piety and faith, along with their social status. Once these works of art had been painted, they were often donated to churches and monasteries.
The Renaissance marked a renewal for the arts and portrait painting was no exception. At the beginning of this period, artists were unconcerned about lifelike, realistic work. Sitters or the subjects represented were identifiable through the use of symbolic objects and the inclusion of their name.
Giotto revolutionized portraiture by imitating sculpture. He began to paint shadows, the subjects' expressions, effects of depth and began to use foreshortening. His knowledge soon began to spread.
Brunelleschi then introduced the idea of perspective in architecture, a concept which Masaccio adapted to painting. Italy became the center of portrait painting and the most important Italian families (including the Médici family) commissioned artwork by the best painters. Competition between these painters led them to innovate and led them to produce some of the greatest artworks in history. The most famous is undoubtedly the Mona Lisa by Leonardo de Vinci.
In Northern Europe during the 16th century, Flemish art was restricted by iconoclasm during the Reformation, a period during the depiction of religious figures was banned. Artists turned to courtly art which was particularly popular during the following centuries. A century earlier, Flemish art had marked a turning point with Jan Van Eyck, the inventor of oil painting (the preferred painting technique of Renaissance painters) and master of detailed realism, who influenced an entire generation of Flemish painters.
Over the following centuries, portrait painting continued to be an art form for the elite of society, but painters grew increasingly concerned about depicting realistic figures and communicating the sitter's inner world and emotions. The 20th century saw a growing trend: subjects were not painted to look beautiful (sometimes to their great dismay).
At the end of the 19th century, Impressionist painters became less reliant on sculpted models and sculpture's influence. They left their studios and painted portraits outside, “en plein air." They captured the light as they saw it and painted groups of people together rather than in in several stages.
Modern and contemporary art of the 20th century saw anything go when it came to portraits. Artists like Gustav Klimt, Pablo Picasso, Paul Gauguin and Lucien Freud turned traditional techniques and codified rules on their heads and developed their own unique styles.
Discover portraits by Philippe Pasqua, Robert Combas, Guangyu Dai and Erró on Artsper.
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A Moment Of Silence
William Oxer F.R.S.A.
Painting - 33 x 27.9 x 2.5 cm Painting - 13 x 11 x 1 inch
$2,100
Queen Crowned in a Banana and Black Cat
Kim Soo Young
Painting - 20.3 x 15.2 x 0.1 cm Painting - 8 x 6 x 0 inch
$620
Man of Steel - Superman in the National New York Times
Benjamin SPaRK
Painting - 150 x 100 x 2 cm Painting - 59.1 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
$8,851
Confident
Raphaël Laventure
Painting - 100 x 100 x 3.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.4 inch
$7,328 $6,229
Gödel Escher Bach
Albrecht Behmel
Painting - 100 x 150 x 4 cm Painting - 39.4 x 59.1 x 1.6 inch
$9,922
Les petites variations n°30 bis
Daniela Meza Sigala
Painting - 10.5 x 8.5 x 0.5 cm Painting - 4.1 x 3.3 x 0.2 inch
$676
Blast - série portrait onirique et surréalisme
Samuel Boudaud
Painting - 76 x 60 x 2 cm Painting - 29.9 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch
$2,678
07 - Dancing stilt walkers / Potsdam 2
Sabine Winnemuth
Painting - 90 x 120 x 3 cm Painting - 35.4 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch
$4,059
Folie à Deux- Joker
Diederik Van Apple
Painting - 100 x 109 x 4 cm Painting - 39.4 x 42.9 x 1.6 inch
$5,581
Je trouve de la douceur à vous le dire
Sandra Detourbet
Painting - 35 x 50 x 0.3 cm Painting - 13.8 x 19.7 x 0.1 inch
$958
True Friend 2 - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Women Love Men
Daniel Owoeye
Painting - 121.9 x 121.9 x 2.5 cm Painting - 48 x 48 x 1 inch
$3,250
Enigma IV - scène de vie onirique inspiré du paysage d'Hourtin plage, presqu'île du Médoc
Ti Ban
Painting - 40 x 40 x 2 cm Painting - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch
$564
Portrait of a farmer
Laurent Proneur
Painting - 152.4 x 121.9 x 5.1 cm Painting - 60 x 48 x 2 inch
$30,300
Street Art portrait-32
SmaK-titi
Painting - 100 x 100 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
$2,593
Nureyev in Scarlet and Margot Fonteyn
Joanna Glazer
Painting - 100 x 80 x 1 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.5 x 0.4 inch
$333
Mes soeurs iraniennes
Annick Bonnet Dupeyron
Painting - 52 x 61 x 2 cm Painting - 20.5 x 24 x 0.8 inch
$620
Moment of Self-Actualization - 21st Century Mixed Media with Oil, African Fabrics
Bakare Abubakri-sideeq Babatunde
Painting - 91.4 x 91.4 x 2.5 cm Painting - 36 x 36 x 1 inch
$2,300
Rostro India Unique
Alberto Ricardo
Painting - 70 x 50 x 4 cm Painting - 27.6 x 19.7 x 1.6 inch
$676 $609
La Princesse Lointaine: Porteurs d' Eventails
Erte Tirtoff
Painting - 38.1 x 27.9 x 0.3 cm Painting - 15 x 11 x 0.1 inch
$40,000 $30,000
The Ladder of Jacob
Edward Ben Avram
Painting - 40 x 30 x 2 cm Painting - 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch
$2,400
Once Given a White Rose 2
Agbalaya Abdulahi Opeyemi
Painting - 33 x 25.4 x 2.5 cm Painting - 13 x 10 x 1 inch
$650
Qu'est-ce qu'on attend 1
Flo Jaouen
Painting - 100 x 120 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 47.2 x 0.8 inch
$2,976
Woman Hiking up her Dress
Christian Frederiksen
Painting - 40 x 25 x 0.1 cm Painting - 15.7 x 9.8 x 0 inch
$1,060
Self Esteem - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, African Fabric, Floral
Oluwafemi Afolabi
Painting - 91.4 x 61 x 2.5 cm Painting - 36 x 24 x 1 inch
$2,400
Our Time, Our Fashion
Babatunde Adeogun
Painting - 151.1 x 111.8 x 2.5 cm Painting - 59.5 x 44 x 1 inch
$2,850
L'agent de la cabine
Jean-Michel Mefort
Painting - 130 x 97 x 5 cm Painting - 51.2 x 38.2 x 2 inch
$4,397
Black Heritage 2
Oluwafemi Akanmu
Painting - 91.4 x 66 x 2.5 cm Painting - 36 x 26 x 1 inch
$2,400 $2,160
Blooming in True Self Love - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Fashion Women
Elie Hatungimana
Painting - 100.1 x 80 x 2.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.5 x 1 inch
$1,850 $1,665
Imagine, Yoko Ono and John Lennon
Orest Hrytsak
Painting - 195 x 130 x 2.5 cm Painting - 76.8 x 51.2 x 1 inch
$22,549
Strength in Serenity
Narine Vardanyan
Painting - 100 x 70 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 27.6 x 0.8 inch
$999
Discover the styles & movements
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La Cage et la trace du crayon
Sandra Chevrier
Print - 36 x 30.5 x 0.1 cm Print - 14.2 x 12 x 0 inch
$2,255
Commanda Large Format
Shepard Fairey (Obey)
Print - 105 x 77 x 0.1 cm Print - 41.3 x 30.3 x 0 inch
$2,819
Need help with Portrait Painting for Sale ?
What is meant by portrait painting?
A portrait painting is a painted artwork that depicts a person. A portrait painting usually depicts the upper body of a sitter, for example from the shoulders up.
What art style is a portrait?
A portrait can be created in various different art styles and forms, including sculpture, painting and drawing.
What makes a good portrait?
A portrait can be considered a good work of art for a variety of reasons, including its handling of light, tone and color, its likeness to the person it represents, or its expression of emotion.