Gustave Courbet

Introduction
Early life and work
The development of Realism
Leader of the new school of Realism
Political activities
Legacy

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images

Oil painting A Burial at Ornans by Gustave Courbet shows a large group of mourners, clergy, and a dog gathered outdoors at a gravesite, with cliffs in the background.

Painting by Gustave Courbet showing the artist at his easel in a crowded studio, surrounded by figures including a nude model, onlookers, and a child with a white dog.

Gustave Courbet: Proudhon and His Children

Gustave Courbet: Cliff at Étretat, the Porte d'Aval

At a Glance

Gustave Courbet summary

Quizzes

Color pastels, colored chalk, colorful chalk. Hompepage blog 2009, arts and entertainment, history and society

Ultimate Art Quiz

Close-up of a palette held by a man. Mixing paint, painting, color mixing.

Artists, Painters, & Architects

Tate Modern extension Switch House, London, England. (Tavatnik, museums). Photo dated 2017.

Can You Match These Lesser-Known Paintings to Their Artists?

"The Birth of Venus," tempera on canvas by Sandro Botticelli, c. 1485; in the Uffizi, Florence.

Who Painted the Most Expensive Paintings in the World?

Related Questions

How did A Burial at Ornans challenge the traditional hierarchy of painting subjects?
How did Gustave Courbet define the purpose of painting in 1861?
How did Gustave Courbet’s father support his decision to become a painter?
How did Gustave Courbet’s painting style change during the 1860s?
How did Gustave Courbet’s political beliefs affect criticism of his art?
How did Gustave Courbet’s treatment of peasants differ from Neoclassical and Romantic painting?
How did Honoré Daumier use Realism to criticize French society?
How did Pierre-Joseph Proudhon influence Gustave Courbet’s artistic circle?
How did the Barbizon School help prepare the way for Gustave Courbet’s Realism?
How did the Revolution of 1848 affect the French art world?
How does The Stone Breakers portray rural physical labor?
How many life-size figures appear in A Burial at Ornans?
What subjects did Gustave Courbet paint besides peasants and landscapes?
When and where was Gustave Courbet born?
When was The Painter’s Studio painted?
Where did Gustave Courbet live during his final years in Switzerland?
Where is A Burial at Ornans displayed?
Which Gustave Courbet self-portrait was accepted by the Salon in 1844?
Which artist praised Gustave Courbet’s Pavilion of Realism?
Which writers and thinkers were close friends of Gustave Courbet?
Why did Gustave Courbet go to Paris in 1841?
Why did Gustave Courbet open the Pavilion of Realism in 1855?
Why did Gustave Courbet paint the cliffs and stormy skies at Étretat?
Why did the huge size of A Burial at Ornans surprise Salon audiences?
Why is Gustave Courbet considered a leader of the Realist movement?
Why was The Stone Breakers considered a Realist painting?
Why is Piet Mondrian so famous?
What is Piet Mondrian famous for?
What was Piet Mondrian’s family like?
What did Vincent van Gogh accomplish?
Why did Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear and who did he give it to?
What was Vincent van Gogh’s cause of death?
What is Caravaggio best known for?
What are some of Picasso’s most famous pieces?
Why is Picasso important?
How much is Picasso’s art worth?

Visual Arts Painting Painters

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External Websites

Art in Context - Gustave Courbet - Artistic Biography of This French Realist Painter
National Gallery of Arts - Gustave Courbet
The Art Story - Gustave Courbet

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Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.

Gustave Courbet - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)

Gustave Courbet

French painter

Written by

Robert J. Fernier

President, The Friends of Gustave Courbet, Paris. Author of Gustave Courbet, peintre de l'art vivant.

Robert J. Fernier

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

Britannica Editors

History

Gustave Courbet (born June 10, 1819, Ornans, France—died December 31, 1877, La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland) was a French painter and leader of the Realist movement. Courbet rebelled against the Romantic painting of his day, turning to everyday events for his subject matter. His huge shadowed canvases with their solid groups of figures, such as The Painter’s Studio (1854–55), drew sharp criticism from the establishment. From the 1860s a more sensuous and colorful manner prevailed in his...

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