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“LUCA” Presents Art

BY ROBERT V. VAUGHN, ED. D.
June 1, 1993

Recently, the gallery of the historic Gasperi home on St. Croix was the backdrop for Luca Gasperi's latest works of art. There were about thirty-five watercolors on exhibition.

This talented young Virgin Islands artist is a graduate of Good Hope School on St. Croix, and a student at Parsons School of Design in New York.

Gasperi's works are innovative in many ways, going from somber works such as the very symbolic "African Watcho" to the flamboyant, such as "Comanche Mill." Both "African Watcho" and "Comanche Mill" appear to be diversions from most of the other works on exhibition, however. There is also humor in the display, such as a very ferocious huge bull's face peering out from undefined foliage.

Most of Gasperi's works are romantically pleasing. Realism is the main thrust of his works, with overtones of impressionism. If one must find an example of the works of some comparable traditional recognized artist, it might be George Inness, although Gasperi's works are in a different medium and have different subject matter.

Gasperi's use of watercolor tends to be a little bolder, a little more opaque than many traditional watercolorists, giving it an originality all its own. In addition, as a variation from others, he tends to ignore "standard" sizes for his works, using size and dimension to enhance the subject matter and the balance in his works. An example of this is the marvelous work, "Little Boy," a local youngster enjoying the surf.

With the momentum already established, Luca Gasperi will be a name to be reckoned with in the world of beaux-arts.

Robert V. Vaughn, Ed. D.
Box 1122, Christiansted, VI 00821
Phone/Fax: (340)778-8465