Matthew Grabelsky: Princess

In his latest series, Grabelsky transports these beloved figures from their fairy-tale origins into present-day settings, asking viewers to reconsider who these women might be if encountered on the street today. While echoes of enchantment remain, these women are unmistakably contemporary. Each painting is infused with subtle visual clues that allude to the characters’ histories and origins.

Through meticulous oil painting techniques inspired by Old Master traditions, he pairs classical precision with playfulness and humor. Grabelsky also situates the series within a broader artistic lineage. Drawing on the ancient Greek belief that comedy and tragedy are inseparable, he contrasts the seriousness often found in contemporary art with a lighter, more mischievous sensibility. By doing so, the artist aims to reveal the humanity behind mythology’s most recognizable  heroines. 

Matthew Grabelsky is a Los Angeles-based painter whose distinctive work blends classical realism with surrealism, inviting viewers into a world where the everyday and the extraordinary collide. Best known for his dreamlike subway scenes that feature human-animal hybrids in mundane urban settings, Grabelsky uses hyper-realistic oil painting techniques to render his subjects with striking precision.

Raised in New York and trained in both art and astrophysics, Grabelsky draws on a unique blend of scientific curiosity and technical mastery. After studying astrophysics, art and art history at Rice University and completing a rigorous classical painting program in Florence, Italy, he developed a visual language rooted in academic tradition but infused with the fantastical. His paintings playfully reference mythology, pop culture, and the hidden inner lives of city dwellers, each work a narrative frozen in time.

Grabelsky’s work has been exhibited internationally and is held in private and institutional collections across the United States and abroad. He has pushed the boundaries of figurative painting with a vision that is both accessible and thought-provoking. Through his meticulously crafted compositions, Grabelsky invites us to look again at the world around us, reminding us that beneath the surface of the familiar lies the surreal, the humorous, and the deeply human.