Transrealism is a branch of visual art exposing that which is over realism, appealing to one's own perception of the truth over adherence to the actual fact; transrealism is the poetry of visual arts. The ars poetica of transrealism was created by the well known 20th century Hungarian poet, Attila József in his 1937 poem Welcome to Thomas Mann: "You know this well: the poet never lies,

The real is not enough; through its disguise

Tell us the truth which fills the mind with light

Because, without each other, all is night."

Transrealism first appeared in the visual arts during the early 1980ies through the works of painter Zsuzsa Mathe; but many of its applications can be found in film (like Terry Gilliam's Brazil (1985) and photography as well.

Transrealism is not a simple technique of using the brush, like pointillism, neither is it a singular expression of style, like cubism, or impressionism. Transrealism is the common denominator of those pieces of art that effectively communicate that which we all know is true. It integrates any stylistic element and technique to communicate the perceived truth, the intended content.

As stated in its ars poetica, to understand a transrealist artwork one does not need to be an expert in various styles of art. It is the art of the 21st century fulfilling the long awaited return to the basics: art is communication, and it shall be understandable by the observer; it shall not expect the audience to be sophisticated or educated in the subject. Instead it is the artist`s responsibility to be versed enough in their profession and their tools of art to be able to express themselves to convey a message and be universally understood.