A Brush with the Real: Figurative Painting Today presents a dynamic new approach to figurative painting. By examining the work of a carefully curated collection of 51 contemporary artists, this book celebrates the unprecedented revival of figurative painting in its many new forms. Arranged in three thematic parts, this book reveals the background, tools, reference materials and media that inspire each artist to take figurative painting in new directions. We peer into painters' lives to witness the use of groundbreaking digital technologies, the building of large-scale sets and painstaking methods of preparing materials, all resulting in hugely complex and inspiring works.