Social themes in Western European painting of realism

The gravitation of art to a true reproduction of reality, a concrete analysis of the facts of harsh everyday life and the identification of the reasons for their occurrence were most vividly reflected in the visual arts, and especially in painting. The primary task of the realists was artistic knowledge of the essence of the national character, the history of the people and the conditions of their life.

Artists of different fates, temperaments and attitudes to social problems persistently searched for their own creative path, solved the problem of reproducing reality as it is, introduced life-affirming pathos into their works. The richness and variety of social themes of realist painting ensured its worthy place in the artistic culture of the second half of the 19th century.