Portrait Painting for Sale
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My grandfather visits the Egyptian Room at the British Museum
Massoud Hayoun
Painting - 91 x 101 x 5 cm Painting - 35.8 x 39.8 x 2 inch
$5,654
If I Could Read Your Mind
Vikki Drummond
Painting - 31 x 23 x 4 cm Painting - 12.2 x 9.1 x 1.6 inch
$181
From the series Ecology of soul and nature III
Mykola Mamchur
Painting - 50 x 60 x 0.5 cm Painting - 19.7 x 23.6 x 0.2 inch
$1,696
From the series Ecology of soul and nature I
Mykola Mamchur
Painting - 50 x 60 x 0.5 cm Painting - 19.7 x 23.6 x 0.2 inch
$1,696
Bleasure 7 (The Invented Destiny)
Ajegbomogun Damilola
Painting - 121.9 x 106.7 x 2.5 cm Painting - 48 x 42 x 1 inch
$3,250
The clown - Italian painting
Romano Mussolini
Painting - 40 x 30 x 2 cm Painting - 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch
$735
La mélodie du colibris
Yutao Ge
Painting - 100 x 100 x 2.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 39.4 x 1 inch
$3,619
Promenade dans l'espace
Yutao Ge
Painting - 100 x 50 x 2.5 cm Painting - 39.4 x 19.7 x 1 inch
$2,375
Bleasure 6 (The Converse Man)
Ajegbomogun Damilola
Painting - 152.4 x 152.4 x 2.5 cm Painting - 60 x 60 x 1 inch
$4,500
Urban Tumult VI
Yoann Bonneville (YBA)
Painting - 130 x 195 x 6 cm Painting - 51.2 x 76.8 x 2.4 inch
$7,125
Esercizio su les fleurs de iris di mucha
Davide Ricchetti
Painting - 56 x 40 x 0.5 cm Painting - 22 x 15.7 x 0.2 inch
$1,357
Musicienne jouant avec une poêle
Victorien Bazo
Painting - 90 x 70 x 5 cm Painting - 35.4 x 27.6 x 2 inch
$3,619
Femme qui nage sur un lit
Victorien Bazo
Painting - 90 x 70 x 5 cm Painting - 35.4 x 27.6 x 2 inch
$3,619
Bleasure 5 (House of Cards)
Ajegbomogun Damilola
Painting - 121.9 x 119.9 x 2.5 cm Painting - 48 x 47.2 x 1 inch
$3,250
Les fleurs ne me tueront pas
Arome
Painting - 100 x 73 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 28.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,357
12 pains azyme 7 boules de cristal
Thibault Franc
Painting - 100 x 80 x 2 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch
$1,696
Anniversary - Contemporary self portrait
Nataliya Bagatskaya
Painting - 100 x 70 x 2.3 cm Painting - 39.4 x 27.6 x 0.9 inch
$2,827
La Jeune fille de Korodouga
Amadou Opa Bathily
Painting - 80 x 80 x 5 cm Painting - 31.5 x 31.5 x 2 inch
$3,619
Boulangerie - Patisserie
Annaelle Myriam Chaib
Painting - 114 x 107 x 5 cm Painting - 44.9 x 42.1 x 2 inch
$5,654
Tertulia
Mayra AleJandra Lifischtz
Painting - 80 x 59.9 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch
$2,810
No Windowsill
Maxime Cousineau Perusse
Painting - 61 x 76.2 x 3.6 cm Painting - 24 x 30 x 1.4 inch
$740
Summer in La Baule VI - Sun Bathing LA french school artist basel
Bazévian Delacapucinière
Painting - 30 x 30 x 3.5 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 1.4 inch
$509
Summer in La Baule V - LA french school artist basel
Bazévian Delacapucinière
Painting - 30 x 30 x 3.5 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 1.4 inch
$509
Refracted Visage 3
Niall Pickvance
Painting - 80 x 60 x 3 cm Painting - 31.5 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch
$2,431
Refracted Visage 2
Niall Pickvance
Painting - 80 x 60 x 3 cm Painting - 31.5 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch
$2,431
Peace and Tranquility 1
Joshua Salami
Painting - 91.4 x 91.4 x 2.5 cm Painting - 36 x 36 x 1 inch
$2,500
Ya es primavera
Mercedes Lagunas
Painting - 100 x 80 x 0.1 cm Painting - 39.4 x 31.5 x 0 inch
$2,890
Living in the Moment of Peace 2
Joshua Salami
Painting - 121.9 x 121.9 x 2.5 cm Painting - 48 x 48 x 1 inch
$3,000
Living in the Moment of Peace
Joshua Salami
Painting - 121.9 x 121.9 x 2.5 cm Painting - 48 x 48 x 1 inch
$3,000
Je ne me sens plus de joie #5
Marie Rauzy
Painting - 92 x 73 x 3 cm Painting - 36.2 x 28.7 x 1.2 inch
$6,559
Je ne me sens plus de joie #6
Marie Rauzy
Painting - 46 x 38 x 3 cm Painting - 18.1 x 15 x 1.2 inch
$6,559
Stay Bold, Stay Gold
Joshua Salami
Painting - 121.9 x 91.4 x 2.5 cm Painting - 48 x 36 x 1 inch
$2,500
Dreamer in a ballet
Etienne Quesnay
Painting - 97 x 130 x 2.5 cm Painting - 38.2 x 51.2 x 1 inch
$3,393
Brigitte Bardot
Peter Donkersloot
Painting - 120 x 120 x 4 cm Painting - 47.2 x 47.2 x 1.6 inch
$8,482
Tony Soprano - James Gandolfini
Peter Donkersloot
Painting - 150 x 120 x 3 cm Painting - 59.1 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch
$9,613
Michael Corleone in Sicily
Peter Donkersloot
Painting - 120 x 240 x 3 cm Painting - 47.2 x 94.5 x 1.2 inch
$14,136
Godfather "hand kiss"
Peter Donkersloot
Painting - 150 x 120 x 3 cm Painting - 59.1 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch
$9,613
Sophia Loren "Kitchen"
Peter Donkersloot
Painting - 150 x 120 x 3 cm Painting - 59.1 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch
$9,613
Marilyn Monroe Cadillac
Peter Donkersloot
Painting - 120 x 150 x 3 cm Painting - 47.2 x 59.1 x 1.2 inch
$9,613
Rotterdam et moi 2
Marian Williams
Painting - 130 x 97 x 2 cm Painting - 51.2 x 38.2 x 0.8 inch
$3,336
Rotterdam et moi 1
Marian Williams
Painting - 130 x 97 x 2 cm Painting - 51.2 x 38.2 x 0.8 inch
$3,336
Discover the styles & movements
Discover the selection of our experts
Circus Acrobats
Joanna Zakrzewska-Cholewa
Sculpture - 49 x 15 x 6 cm Sculpture - 19.3 x 5.9 x 2.4 inch
$1,808 $1,628
My village, a child and a Lego
Eulogia Merle
Painting - 100 x 120 cm Painting - 39.4 x 47.2 inch
$2,737
Contemporary portrait "Cat Country"
Nataliya Bagatskaya
Painting - 90 x 55 x 1.8 cm Painting - 35.4 x 21.7 x 0.7 inch
$2,250
Diamant Noir
Sinden Collier
Photography - 51 x 41 x 0.1 cm Photography - 20.1 x 16.1 x 0 inch
$1,809
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.
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.