Artist Robert Gratiot refers to his work as painterly photo-realism, and he readily reveals his complete commitment to this reference by rendering his subjects with photographic accuracy. His mastery of painterly methods and of various drawing techniques highlights his astounding eye-to-hand coordination. Gratiot precisely conveys a particular scene through meticulously produced details, each down to the smallest and expertly handled. But it is more than that--he regards each small section of a painting as an abstraction, and then assembles these tiny abstractions to build the realistic whole. His paintings are obviously the product of the considerable efforts of a very gifted and extremely meticulous painter.

The genuine revelation is how deeply personal and individual these pieces are for Robert Gratiot. This is a surprise, particularly considering the impersonal nature of his subjects. However, each is deeply felt and carries hidden moods and veiled stories, which until he shared them, were known only to Gratiot.--Michael Paglia