Somber Portrait Painters
Sadness, melancholy and gloom have found an outlet in artists throughout history and in the depiction of figurative art. Through artists, humanity and their emotional and physical states are portrayed to be viewed and related to. The instant recognition of such a grave subject also plagues human history itself, thus carving out its own rightful spot amongst the history of art movements. In Edgar Degas' 1875 painting L'Absinthe, where viewers see a portrait of a young woman solemnly contemplating her situation, disengaged from their gaze, her surroundings, maybe even from herself.
Dark hues and colors define somber portrait painting and can highlight the cause of such sadness, whether that be the subject's emotional state or a greater rendering of the world's expanse and the human existence within it. Existential or not, the traits of somber artwork can be found in our own collection of portraits on Artsper. The portraiture work of Nicolas Fropo de Habart works the body in all its dimensions to create an absolute feeling of vastness while Antoine Stevens also depicts wandering souls in his dimmed portraiture. But given the nature of humanity, somber depictions of the figure are not entirely unexpected…
Save your search and find it in your favorites
Save your search to find it quickly
Saved search
Your search is accessible from the favorites tab > My favorite searches
Unsaved search
A problem occurred
Queen of Flowers - Format M
Clara Diebler
Photography - 60 x 40 x 1 cm Photography - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0.4 inch
€500
Hongkong mood light
Lisbeth Buonanno
Painting - 27 x 22 x 2 cm Painting - 10.6 x 8.7 x 0.8 inch
€750
Liberté de penser
Cécile Desserle
Painting - 70 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 27.6 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
€1,800
Situation bancale sous latitude 45'3
Nicolas Monjo
Painting - 65 x 54 x 2 cm Painting - 25.6 x 21.3 x 0.8 inch
€2,200
Déshabillé II
Jean-Baptiste Dumont
Painting - 117 x 97 x 3 cm Painting - 46.1 x 38.2 x 1.2 inch
€2,400
You lose control
Lucile Callegari
Painting - 100 x 100 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch
€2,900 €2,610
Untitled
Carlos Mendez
Fine Art Drawings - 64 x 45 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 25.2 x 17.7 x 0 inch
€555
Costume
Eugene Berman
Fine Art Drawings - 16.5 x 11.8 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 6.5 x 4.6 x 0 inch
€600
Portrait
Albert Fernand-Renault
Fine Art Drawings - 56 x 42 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 22 x 16.5 x 0 inch
€500
Sans Titre
Jean-Baptiste Dumont
Fine Art Drawings - 32 x 24 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.6 x 9.4 x 0 inch
€150
Sans Repères
Hom Nguyen
Fine Art Drawings - 150 x 150 x 4 cm Fine Art Drawings - 59.1 x 59.1 x 1.6 inch
€26,400
Portrait
François Chapuis
Fine Art Drawings - 49 x 35 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 19.3 x 13.8 x 0.1 inch
€580
Personnage à la houppe
Georges Bru
Fine Art Drawings - 15 x 20 cm Fine Art Drawings - 5.9 x 7.9 inch
€1,050
Woman
Simon Goldberg
Fine Art Drawings - 12 x 15 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 4.7 x 5.9 x 0 inch
€300
Gueule d'ange N°17
Stephane Richard
Painting - 68 x 49 x 1 cm Painting - 26.8 x 19.3 x 0.4 inch
€890
Soldier
Jacques Hirtz
Fine Art Drawings - 41 x 29 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 16.1 x 11.4 x 0.1 inch
€300
Sepulchre
Alfred Pichon
Fine Art Drawings - 24 x 27 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.4 x 10.6 x 0 inch
€480
La Lampe à Pétrole
Nicolas Carréga
Fine Art Drawings - 31.5 x 23.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.4 x 9.3 inch
€250
Pensive
Erdna André
Fine Art Drawings - 100 x 70 x 3 cm Fine Art Drawings - 39.4 x 27.6 x 1.2 inch
€500
A la bonne vôtre VI
Christophe Blanc
Painting - 100 x 81 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.9 x 0.8 inch
€3,100
Retrato 1
Juan Sebastian Barbera
Fine Art Drawings - 75.9 x 55.9 cm Fine Art Drawings - 29.9 x 22 inch
€1,274
Femme 1
Roger Decaux
Fine Art Drawings - 100 x 70 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 39.4 x 27.6 x 0 inch
€4,000
Vert et chair sur fond noir
Sandra Quintin
Painting - 59 x 40 x 1 cm Painting - 23.2 x 15.7 x 0.4 inch
€600
Black Iris - Size L
Clara Diebler
Photography - 90 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography - 35.4 x 23.6 x 0 inch
€1,200