Hyperrealism

Art MovementMrs. Fox – Fall

2012

Hyperrealism• a genre of

painting and sculpture resembling a high-resolution photograph.

• Hyperrealism is considered an advancement of Photorealism

The Difference• Hyperrealism, although

photographic in essence, often entails a softer, much more complex focus on the subject depicted, presenting it as a living, tangible object.

• paintings and sculptures are meticulously detailed to create the illusion of a reality not seen in the original photo.

Richard Estes

• the hyperreal painter is more literal, incorporating photographic limitations such as depth of field, perspective and focus

• Projection transfer techniques are often used to get exact detail in large paintings – this is acceptable for this style of painting

Method

Ralph Goings Artist Statement

"In 1963 I wanted to start painting again but I decided I wasn't going to do abstract pictures... It occurred to me that projecting and tracing the photograph instead of copying it freehand would be even more shocking. To copy a photograph literally was considered a bad thing to do. It went against all of my art school training... some people were upset by what I was doing and said 'it's not art, it can't possibly be art'. That gave me encouragement in a perverse way, because I was delighted to be doing something that was really upsetting people... I was having a hell of a lot of fun..."

Robert Bechtle

• Bechtle’s paintings are characterized by the misty quality of the light in San Francisco, middle class neighborhoods, automobiles, and ordinary people.

• If he imparted one thing to his students, Bechtle -- who retired in 1999 from SFSU -- hopes it was "the old cliché of how to see.”

• "He would get people to slow down and look“

Scale as part of the Aesthetic Objective

• Hyperrealistic images or sculptures are typically 10 to 20 times the size of the original photographic reference source, yet retain an extremely high resolution in color, precision and detail.

Untitled, Pedro Campos, Oil on Canvas, Hyperrealism

Pie with Iced Tea, Ralph Goings, Oil on Canvas, Hyperrealism

Frisco Nova, Robert Bechtle, Oil on Canvas, Hyperrealism

Telephone Booths, Richard Estes, Oil on Canvas, Hyperrealism

The Tip, Steve Mills, Oil on Canvas, Hyperrealism

Baby, Ron Meuck, silicone, polyurethane, wood, synthetic hair, Hyperrealism