Robert Bechtle, who lives and works in Berkeley, California, was part of the photo-realist movement on the West Coast along with other well-known 'new realists' such as Paul Wonner, Richard McLean and Ralph Goings. Differing from East Coast photo realists who did studio still lives and figures, these artists painted outdoor landscapes such as cars parked on streets, home exteriors, and streetscapes. Often Bechtle's paintings have no direct human presence but ever the suggestion that people are nearby.

Photo-realists, a term coined by Louis Meisel, an East Coast dealer, depict everyday scenes in perfect detail emulating a photograph. The process involves using a photographed image and projecting it onto a ...