EPRIS
museum | virtual
est. 2026 · a division of the journal
04 / 10

Realism

the thing seen, not improved

Painting that refused the heroic subject. What the century actually looked like: work, weather, rooms with the furniture still in them.

works 12artists 10dates 1822 – 1906entry free
← all halls
Large, dark painting of Jesus sitting with three standing soldiers.
Key work of the hall Édouard Manet Jesus Mocked by the Soldiers 1865 · Oil on canvas
Gift of James Deering
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
Still life painting of strawberries, nuts, lemon, and porcelain vessels.
Raphaelle Peale Still Life—Strawberries, Nuts, &c. 1822 · Oil on wood panel
Philadelphia · 41.1 × 57.8 cm
Gift of Jamee J. and Marshall Field
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A plucked chicken, a few stray feathers remaining, hangs upside-down by one foot, illuminated. Behind it the metal hinges and wood panels of a door are visible.
William Michael Harnett For Sunday's Dinner 1888 · Oil on canvas
United States · 94.3 × 53.6 cm
Wilson L. Mead Fund
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
Dozens of figures in a brown field filled with discarded corn silks form two rows and sit across from each other husking corn, a farm in the background.
Eastman Johnson Husking Bee, Island of Nantucket 1876 · Oil on canvas
Nantucket Island · 69.6 × 138.2 cm
Gift of Honoré and Potter Palmer
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
Dark portrait of an older light-skinned women with dark hair in a black dress and white collar, her hair pinned up. Her face is in partial shadow.
Thomas Eakins Portrait of Mary Adeline Williams 1899 · Oil on canvas
Philadelphia · 61 × 50.8 cm
Friends of American Art Collection
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A work made of oil on canvas.
Édouard Manet Beggar with a Duffle Coat (Philosopher) 1865–67 · Oil on canvas
France · 187.7 × 109.9 cm
A. A. Munger Collection
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A work made of oil on canvas.
Thomas Hicks A Friendly Warning 1881–90 · Oil on canvas
United States · 62.9 × 81.9 cm
A. A. McKay Fund
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A work made of oil on panel.
Constant Troyon Pasture in Normandy 1852 · Oil on panel
France · 38.5 × 55 cm
Henry Field Memorial Collection
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A work made of oil on canvas.
Julius Gari Melchers Mother and Child c. 1906 · Oil on canvas
Netherlands · 63.5 × 54.3 cm
Gift of James Deering
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A work made of oil on canvas.
John Singer Sargent Life Study (Study of an Egyptian Girl) 1891 · Oil on canvas
Egypt · 190.5 × 61 cm
Anonymous loan
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A work made of oil on canvas.
William Michael Harnett Just Dessert 1891 · Oil on canvas
United States · 56.6 × 68 cm
Friends of American Art Collection
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain
A work made of oil on canvas.
De Scott Evans The Irish Question 1880s · Oil on canvas
United States · 30.5 × 25.4 cm
Purchased with funds provided by Carol W. Wardlaw and Jill Burnside Zeno; Roger and J. Peter McCormick Endowment Fund
Art Institute of Chicago · public domain

Where you are

Realism on the plan of the building.
04 / 10
upper tier · +6.40 circulation spine void over court light drops to the tier below 06 Post-Impressionism 12 works · 18x12 m 07 Modernism 12 works · 18x12 m 08 Ukiyo-e 12 works · 16x12 m 09 Pictorialism 12 works · 18x10 m 10 Folk Art 12 works · 16x10 m dn lower tier · +0.00 circulation spine court · open air 01 Renaissance and Before 12 works · 18x12 m 02 The Seventeenth Century 12 works · 18x12 m 03 The Barbizon School 7 works · 16x12 m 04 Realism 12 works · 18x10 m you are here 05 Impressionism 12 works · 16x10 m up entrance 52 m 10 m N ▭ hall, width follows the size of the hang · ⌐ door · ▤ open-air court · ≡ stair upper tier · +6.40 circulation spine dn 06 Post-Impressionism 12 works 07 Modernism 12 works 08 Ukiyo-e 12 works 09 Pictorialism 12 works 10 Folk Art 12 works lower tier · +0.00 circulation spine up 01 Renaissance and Before 12 works 02 The Seventeenth Century 12 works 03 The Barbizon School 7 works 04 Realism 12 works you are here 05 Impressionism 12 works court · open air entrance 10 m N

Every work shown here is in the public domain and comes from the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, published under its Open Access programme (CC0). Artist, title, date, medium and the museum’s own credit line are printed under each plate, and every plate links to the object record in Chicago. EPRIS Museum claims no rights in these images.