Realism

19th century - european movement in opposition to the idealistic classicism favoring realistic presentations, permitting free interpretation - compare naturalism 

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Art which is an accurate depiction of nature. This is a term that is used in the most general sense. The term originated in the mid nineteenth-century, in France, when the painter Gustave Courbet said that since he had never seen an angel he could certainly never paint one. He devoted his life to painting the life around him. Realism was a big part of the art world until the 1950's when it was almost eliminated from critical consideration. It resurfaced in the 1960's with Pop art and the new realism. Today, realism is still a big part of the art world and is argued all the time as to its merits. Sometimes there is a very fine line between realism in hight art and hack art.