Paul S. Brown

American, (Contemporary)

A true Classical Realist, Paul upholds rigorous standards and holds firm to principles of artistic integrity, emulating the techniques and materials of the Old Masters. In a process he calls ‘Slow Art’ – referencing the Slow Food movement – he works from life in the naturalist tradition, paints on linen canvas and prepares his own paints by hand, carefully selecting pigments and oils to his precise requirements. Paul explains, “It’s a good foundation, to have the knowledge that you’re using the best pigment, bought at the mines and hand-ground yourself. When I pull out a tube of, say, yellow ochre, I know exactly where it come from and the journey I went through to go and get it. That gives a history to a painting, even at its early stages.”

Paul’s focus is on universal beauty, and in pursuit of this he enjoys painting all subjects, concentrating on the nude and still life but also producing portraits and landscapes. He is an exquisite draftsman, and his perfectly composed works are rich with atmosphere and detail.

Paul has an immeasurable talent for finding the beauty in all objects, be that a ball of twine and terracotta pots found in his garden shed or dusty vintage bottles of wine, ready to be poured as a delectable treat for a connoisseur.

Paul’s work is a rare combination of classical composition and exquisite colour and tone, made possible by his insistence on working exclusively from life and on using his own hand ground paints. These precise skills are particularly apparent in his figurative work. Paul considers figurative work as the pinnacle of artistic investigation. His nudes are painted with his characteristic restraint and elegance.

Paul’s still lifes always provide a visual banquet for the connoisseur of fine food and wine. Much of his work is deeply inspired by the flavours of produce that make their way onto his kitchen table and is often a celebration of the journey of farm and field to larder, cellar and kitchen. His still lifes breathe on the canvas; the shoots growing from onions, the daylight fading on a newly opened bottle of Bordeaux as a ripe brie oozes off a cheeseboard. Freshly harvested vegetables and a glorious abundance of foie gras and fowl provide an atmosphere of feasting to some works, whilst others become moments of pause and reflection – quiet glasses of the finest wine sipped in the afternoon sun with ripe slices of cheese.

Paul’s early training at the Florence Academy of Art, an art teaching institution renowned for its commitment to the academic tradition, in Italy, still resonates from his paintings today. There is a resolution of style through his careful scholarship and consideration of the French academic tradition, which uphold Paul’s worldwide reputation as a leading contemporary realist painter.