Superrealism on view at Gallery Piquel in New Hope

Add'Helen' by Kathleen Varga, 12 x 9 caption

Gallery Piquel in New Hope typically displays a fairly wide range of painting styles at its 39 N. Main St. locale. But it's the super-realistic (or "photo-realistic") paintings in the current show that are real attention grabbers.

One standout is Chris Cooper, who grew up in Philadelphia but now lives in Lawrence, NJ. Inspired by and reminiscent of Caravaggio, Cooper's paintings feature exceptional detail of the human form combined with a stark interplay between light and dark that renders much of his work surreal.

Among several others worth mention is Kathleen Varga, who grew up in Edison, NJ, and has a superealistic style that turns the everyday and mundane into vehicles for insight into the human condition. Her work has recently been shown at Phillips Mill Art Association, Artists of Yardley, and Salmagundi Art Club in New York City.

Gallery Piquel can be reached at (215) 862-3523.