By Lookout Staff

February 14, 2012 -- A painter whose portraits hearken back to the old master and one known for his depictions of mega-stores and fast food restaurants will be showcased at Santa Monica College through March 10.

"Faces and Places," which will open Tuesday at the Pete & Susan Barrett Art Gallery will display not only finished paintings byMarc Trujillo and Sean Cheetham, but also "preparatory works, sketchbooks and other work that informs the studio practice for both artists, college officials said.

Marc Trujillo's "3800 Barham Boulevard" will be in the upcoming exhibit at SMC, "Faces and Places."

An SMC art professor, Trujillo's work in oil depict "Target interiors, Costco parking lots, fast-food restaurants, and reflective building fronts," gallery officials said. They are places the artist refers to as "non-destinations, particularly North American kinds of nowhere."

Trujillo's work has been exhibited in major art centers, including solo shows in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York. A recipient of the 2001 Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award, Trujillo was awarded a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship in 2008.

"Every detail in Trujillo's fast-paced, consumer-driven environments is the result of slow painting, of careful and keen observation, both analytic and synthetic," gallery officials said.

"Trujillo depicts his contemporary urban surroundings with such detail and lucidity that one feels instantly transported-somewhere, nowhere, to a place we all know, or think we know."

But Trujillo relies more on the eye and the techniques of the old masters than on the camera that has become the favored tool for photorealists.

Sean Cheetham's "Koreatown"

Cheetham, too, turns to the past for his technique for his portraits, choosing "to paint his subjects with a gripping honesty that captivates the viewer…creating rich layers to capture the subtle nuances of his subjects," according to gallery officials.

The show runs February 14 to March 10, with the opening reception from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, Feb. 24. The gallery is located in the SMC Performing Arts Center on Santa Monica Boulevard at 11th Street.

Gallery hours are noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. For information, call (310) 434-3434.