DANIEL SPRICK, one of the top realist artists in the 21st century, has been inspired by many great artists of past and present who have, he says, shown us what the possibilities are. Sprick chooses the subject matter for his still lifes and interiors with both visual and symbolic properties in mind. He intuitively arranges contrasting objects - a sun-bleached bone balancing on a hunk of granite - then solidifies the sparse composition with a glossy, red apple.

Sprick's tendency to juxtapose the unexpected suggests a light-heartedness that brings a smile to the viewer's face as one is drawn to an exquisite, highly polished urn and then notices the old mop off to one side. Watch a YouTube video of Daniel Sprick in his studio.