ST. LOUIS, MO.- William Shearburn Gallery presents Made You Look, a group exhibition showcasing artists who employ a keen attention to detail, ranging from hyperrealist painting to conceptual sculpture. Whether through the unconventional application of materials or uncanny realism, the illusionism created in this style is, in itself, a bit of magic. Artists in this exhibition use humor, play, and memory as starting points to explore topics ranging from the mundane to the bizarre—creating works that make viewers do a double take and question what they are truly seeing.


Brian DePauli, Sk8 Liborius, 2022. Oil on panel, 36 x 45 in.

• Humaira Abid
• Danie Cansino
• Marc Dennis
• Brian DePauli
• Tamara Johnson
• Rachel Kalman
• Ryosuke Kumakura
• Tim Liddy
• Dan Life
• Rebecca Manson
• Christian Rex van Minnen
• Rod Penner
• Liliana Porter
• Matthew Rosenquist
• Bernardo Torrens
• Eric Yahnker
• Cayce Zavaglia

Hyperrealist paintings by artists Marc Dennis, Brian DePauli, Rachel Kalman, Christian Rex van Minnen, and Rod Penner have a significant presence in Made You Look. Marc Dennis’s paintings are characterized by their vivid realism and intricate attention to detail, often blending cartoonish elements with lifelike representations. His work masterfully captures the essence of both beauty and decay, creating compelling visual narratives. Working from direct observation, Kalman’s still-life paintings feature brightly colored fabrics with intricate patterns, historical photos, thrift store tchotchkes, and lush produce. Her work blends uncanny realism and immaculate detail with themes of representation, kitsch, horror, humor, and metaphor.


Cayce Zavaglia (b. 1971), Backseat Driving, 2025. Embroidery, 20 3/4 x x 24 3/4 in.

Eric Yahnker draws inspiration from pop culture and politics. His piece Kismet (2022) depicts Prince reading the Pulitzer Prize winning novel, The Color Purple. His colored pencil drawings hilariously combine iconography from both the past and the present, creating complex metaphors that spark thought and laughter. Artists Tim Liddy and Dan Life also use pop culture references from the past in the present. Liddy has been using board games as inspiration for over 20 years, while Life references art history, luxury goods, and contemporary iconography.


Rod Penner (b. 1965), Simple Simon's/Eagle Lake, TX, 2022. Acrylic on canvas, 12 x 18 in.

The exhibition also highlights 3D works by artists Tamara Johnson, Rebecca Manson, and Liliana Porter. Whimsy is present in their work, alongside a sophisticated use of scale and materials. Porter’s studio practice spans works on paper, prints, installations, and videos, often combining these elements in theatrical vignettes. Her thrift store figurines perform various forms of labor, simultaneously evoking humor and distress. With acute material sensitivity, Tamara Johnson recreates ubiquitous objects one might find in a kitchen or backyard. In Colander with Deviled Egg (2025), Johnson uses the everyday kitchen utensil to humorously provoke curiosity.


Installation view.

Artists Humaira Abid, Danie Cansino, Ryosuke Kumakura, and Cayce Zavaglia all use fabric, either as inspiration or as the medium itself, in unique ways to incorporate textiles into their work. Kumakura’s paintings, for example, feature oil-on-canvas renderings of bath towels stretched over a stretcher, mimicking the look of a towel draped over a towel rack. Cayce Zavaglia’s photorealist portraits are meticulously done in cross-stitch, while Cansino’s beautifully executed still lifes and portraits are painted directly on serapes.

Whether you’re looking for a laugh, the slow burn of deeper meaning, or just want to get mesmerized by technical mastery, the artists featured in Made You Look will undoubtedly draw you in for closer inspection.


Rebecca Manson (b. 1989), Storm Drain, 2021. Porcelain, glaze, adhesives and metal, 55 x 52 x 46 in.

The exhibition is co-curated by Brian DePauli and William Shearburn Gallery. For further information, please email info@shearburngallery.com, call 314.367.8020 or visit www.shearburngallery.com.