The Heckscher Museum of Art is pleased to present Master of Illusion: The Magical Art of Gary Erbe, opening Saturday, May 21. Erbe’s impressive oil paintings fool the eye, projecting beyond the two-dimensional canvas with dynamic form and composition.

Master of Illusion traces Erbe’s career from early works executed in the style he coined as “levitational realism”—for the illusionistic levitation of the objects depicted—to more recent paintings that combine trompe l’oeil realism with modernist tendencies. Erbe’s immaculate self-taught skill transforms familiar items with a heightened sense of realism. His inspiration is drawn from popular culture and national pastimes, with subjects ranging from nostalgic images of childhood pursuits, to American jazz, radio, television, and film. Erbe’s postwar childhood is viewed as a golden age; however, some of his works comment on the darker side of American history.

Gary Erbe has exhibited extensively since 1970 with solo exhibitions at museums and galleries throughout America, Asia, and Europe. He has garnered many awards and honors over the years including: an unprecedented six Gold Medals at the Allied Artists of America, Inc.; First Prize from the National Arts Club, NYC; The Julius Hallgarten Award, National Academy of Design, NYC; Lifetime Achievement in American Art from The Butler Institute of American Art; Gold Medal, The National Museum of Sports; and Gold Medal Honor from Audubon Artists, NYC. Master of Illusion: The Magical Art of Gary Erbe remains on view through August 28.

Master of Illusion: The Magical Art of Gary Erbe is generously sponsored in part by Astoria Bank, Andrea B. and Peter D. Klein, and Fern and Hersh Cohen.

Meet a Master of Illusion! on Sunday, May 22, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm, artist Gary Erbe leads a captivating gallery tour exploring his artwork and creative process. Registration is recommended: 631.351.3250.

Also on View:

The exhibition Cornucopia: Still Lifes from the Collection celebrates the beauty and diversity still life reveals about the natural world. Intimate and engaging depictions capture the brilliance of nature’s colors, creating harmonious, yet complex compositions. Featured works from the Museum’s collection trace the development of still life painting from late 19th-century naturalism through the accuracy of photorealism in the 1970s. Featured artists include Carducius Plantagenet Ream, William Merritt Chase, Ilya Bolotowsky, Jan Matulka, Helen Torr, Joseph Stella, David Burliuk, Nicolai Cikovsky, Milton Avery, and Robert Kipniss, among others. Cornucopia: Still Lifes from the Collection remains on view through August 21.

Synapses: Threads for Thought presents over two dozen works from the Museum’s collection as a meandering thread of diverse connections. Paintings, prints, and photographs are arranged so that each work links to those that precede and follow it. Works range from a late 16th-century Annunciation and George Grosz’s Eclipse of the Sun to abstractions by Arthur Dove and photographs by Larry Fink. Synapses: Threads for Thought remains on view through April 9, 2017.