Black-and-White Paintings for the Staircase

Paintings with almost no color: grays, browns and blacks that sit quietly on any wall and beside any fabric. The stairwell is the one place where paintings should not hang level with each other. Here are 54 paintings for the staircase, each with almost no color, with works by Édouard Manet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Mary Cassatt.

All 606 paintings for the staircase

Woman Reading, Édouard Manet 16 × 20 in portrait print (41 × 51 cm), centered 58 in above the stair line. Drawn to scale on a 12 × 8 ft wall.

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Showing 1 to 48 of 54 black-and-white paintings

A young woman in a dark hat and coat with light ruffled collar sits reading a large periodical held up in her gloved hands. Flowers and foliage are suggested behind her.

Édouard Manet Woman Reading, 1880–82 Art Institute of Chicago

Portrait of man, black coat, white collar, hand in book.

Ammi Phillips Cornelius Allerton, 1821–22 Art Institute of Chicago

Portrait of a Woman, Possibly a Nun of San Secondo; (verso) Scene in Grisaille, Jacometto, ca. 1485–95, oil on wood; (verso: oil and gold on wood)

Jacometto Portrait of a Woman, Possibly a Nun of San Secondo; (verso) Scene in Grisaille, ca. 1485–95 The Met

Impressionist painting of two girls on balcony, bright flower hat, knitting basket.

Pierre-Auguste Renoir Two Sisters (On the Terrace), 1881 Art Institute of Chicago

Mäda Primavesi (1903–2000), Gustav Klimt, 1912–13, oil on canvas

Gustav Klimt Mäda Primavesi (1903–2000), 1912–13 The Met

Painting of mother in blue, purple, and green-stripped dress washing child's feet.

Mary Cassatt The Child's Bath, 1893 Art Institute of Chicago

Opulently dressed light-skinned man and woman drink at a small table. A mirror behind them reflects a crowd. Her blue dress and dark hat dominate.

William Glackens At Mouquin's, 1905 Art Institute of Chicago

A man with sparse brown facial hair stands in a full-length black robe on a multicolored tiled floor, a white and brown dog behind him.

Giovanni Battista Moroni Gian Lodovico Madruzzo, 1551–52 Art Institute of Chicago

Woman Mending, Camille Pissarro, 1895, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro Woman Mending, 1895 Art Institute of Chicago

Woman in Front of a Still Life by Cezanne, Paul Gauguin, 1890, oil on linen canvas

Paul Gauguin Woman in Front of a Still Life by Cezanne, 1890 Art Institute of Chicago

On a Balcony, Mary Cassatt, 1878–79, oil on canvas

Mary Cassatt On a Balcony, 1878–79 Art Institute of Chicago

Portrait of Jeanne Wenz, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, 1886, oil on canvas

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Portrait of Jeanne Wenz, 1886 Art Institute of Chicago

Nicolas Rubens, the Artist's Son, Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1635, oil on panel

Peter Paul Rubens Nicolas Rubens, the Artist's Son, c. 1635 Art Institute of Chicago

Young Peasant Having Her Coffee, Camille Pissarro, 1881, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro Young Peasant Having Her Coffee, 1881 Art Institute of Chicago

Café Singer, Edgar Degas, 1879, oil on canvas

Edgar Degas Café Singer, 1879 Art Institute of Chicago

Portrait of a Man, Gustave Caillebotte, 1880, oil on canvas

Gustave Caillebotte Portrait of a Man, 1880 Cleveland Museum of Art

Edward Guthrie Kennedy, James McNeill Whistler, 1893–95, oil on wood

James McNeill Whistler Edward Guthrie Kennedy, 1893–95 The Met

Portrait of an Old Man, El Greco, ca. 1595–1600, oil on canvas

El Greco Portrait of an Old Man, ca. 1595–1600 The Met

Portrait of a Bearded Man with a Ruff, Frans Hals, 1625, oil on canvas

Frans Hals Portrait of a Bearded Man with a Ruff, 1625 The Met

Seated Peasant, Paul Cézanne, ca. 1892–96, oil on canvas

Paul Cézanne Seated Peasant, ca. 1892–96 The Met

Édouard Manet Portrait of a Lady, c. 1879 National Gallery of Art

Shown from the lap up, an older woman with pale, slightly sagging skin and frosty gray hair sits facing us in this loosely painted vertical portrait.

Mary Cassatt Portrait of a Lady, c. 1887 National Gallery of Art

Shown from the hips up, a pale-skinned woman wearing a tightly corseted dress looks off to our left in this vertical pastel drawing. The portrait is loosely sketched with blended areas, giving it a soft look.

Édouard Manet Madame Michel-Lévy, 1882 National Gallery of Art

Child with Brown Hair, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1887/1888, oil on canvas

Pierre-Auguste Renoir Child with Brown Hair, 1887/1888 National Gallery of Art

Portrait of a Man with Gray Hair, Henry Raeburn, 1810–20, oil on canvas

Henry Raeburn Portrait of a Man with Gray Hair, 1810–20 Art Institute of Chicago

Edward Guthrie Kennedy, William Merritt Chase, ca. 1895, oil on canvas

William Merritt Chase Edward Guthrie Kennedy, ca. 1895 The Met

Gulian Verplanck, John Singleton Copley, 1771, oil on canvas

John Singleton Copley Gulian Verplanck, 1771 The Met

Jonathan Sturges, Asher Brown Durand, ca. 1840, oil on canvas

Asher Brown Durand Jonathan Sturges, ca. 1840 The Met

Mrs. Winfield Scott, Asher Brown Durand, 1831, oil on canvas

Asher Brown Durand Mrs. Winfield Scott, 1831 The Met

A Fisherman, Eastman Johnson, 1865, brown inks on tan-color sized canvas

Eastman Johnson A Fisherman, 1865 The Met

Sanford Robinson Gifford, Eastman Johnson, 1880, oil on academy board

Eastman Johnson Sanford Robinson Gifford, 1880 The Met

Catherine Brooks Hall, William Sidney Mount, ca. 1830, oil on canvas

William Sidney Mount Catherine Brooks Hall, ca. 1830 The Met

Martin Euclid Thompson, William Sidney Mount, 1830, oil on canvas

William Sidney Mount Martin Euclid Thompson, 1830 The Met

Portrait of a Gentleman, Charles Willson Peale, ca. 1775, oil on canvas

Charles Willson Peale Portrait of a Gentleman, ca. 1775 The Met

Portrait of a Woman, Charles Willson Peale, ca. 1775, oil on canvas

Charles Willson Peale Portrait of a Woman, ca. 1775 The Met

David Sears, Jr., Gilbert Stuart, ca. 1815, oil on canvas

Gilbert Stuart David Sears, Jr., ca. 1815 The Met

Portrait of a Seated Man, Gerard ter Borch, late 1650s or early 1660s, oil on wood

Gerard ter Borch Portrait of a Seated Man, late 1650s or early 1660s The Met

The painting is of an older woman from the waist up, her body slightly turned to the left and her head facing us. She has pale skin with soft lines, rosy cheeks, deep-set eyes, thin eyebrows, and thin red lips in a neutral expression.

Robert Henri Elizabeth Virginia Laning Bradner Smith (Mrs. George Cotton Smith), 1908 National Gallery of Art

Madame Georges Charpentier (Marguerite-Louise Lemonnier, 1848–1904) and Her Children, Georgette-Berthe (1872–1945) and Paul-Emile-Charles (1875–1895), Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1878, oil on canvas

Pierre-Auguste Renoir Madame Georges Charpentier (Marguerite-Louise Lemonnier, 1848–1904) and Her Children, Georgette-Berthe (1872–1945) and Paul-Emile-Charles (1875–1895), 1878 The Met

Portrait of Don Juan Antonio Cuervo, Francisco de Goya, 1819, oil on canvas

Francisco de Goya Portrait of Don Juan Antonio Cuervo, 1819 Cleveland Museum of Art

Alphonse Promayet (1822–1872), Gustave Courbet, 1851, oil on canvas

Gustave Courbet Alphonse Promayet (1822–1872), 1851 The Met

Woman in a Riding Habit (L'Amazone), Gustave Courbet, ca. 1855–59, oil on canvas

Gustave Courbet Woman in a Riding Habit (L'Amazone), ca. 1855–59 The Met

Tiburcio Pérez y Cuervo (1785/86–1841), the Architect, Francisco de Goya, 1820, oil on canvas

Francisco de Goya Tiburcio Pérez y Cuervo (1785/86–1841), the Architect, 1820 The Met

Portrait of a Man, Frans Hals, early 1650s, oil on canvas

Frans Hals Portrait of a Man, early 1650s The Met

Portrait of a Woman, probably a Member of the Van Beresteyn Family, Rembrandt van Rijn, 1632, oil on canvas

Rembrandt van Rijn Portrait of a Woman, probably a Member of the Van Beresteyn Family, 1632 The Met

Shown from the thighs up, a man with pale, peachy skin, wearing a black suit, cape, and hat, stands with one hand on his hip against an elephant-gray background in this vertical portrait painting.

Frans Hals Portrait of a Gentleman, 1650/1652 National Gallery of Art

Mrs. Sylvanus Bourne, John Singleton Copley, 1766, oil on canvas

John Singleton Copley Mrs. Sylvanus Bourne, 1766 The Met

Anne Dashwood (1743–1830), Later Countess of Galloway, Joshua Reynolds, 1764, oil on canvas

Joshua Reynolds Anne Dashwood (1743–1830), Later Countess of Galloway, 1764 The Met

More for the staircase

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Hallway & Entryway 366 shared
Apartment & Dorm 360 shared
Guest Room 75 shared
Dining Room 71 shared

More for the staircase

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Rooms that share paintings