Paul Greenwood

For as long as i can remember i could always draw. I would doodle all the time with obsessive detail whilst day-dreaming in class in school. For me, growing up was always a bit of a struggle, and drawing and painting was a way of escaping these pains. It wasn’t until i was thirteen that i really discovered that i had something that would steer me into a career. I was fascinated with American Photo-realism, particularly Chuck Close. He painted huge human heads in amazing airbrush detail. This had a profound effect on me and i realised that this was what i wanted to do. I wanted to paint images that touched the soul. I began to learn how to paint in extreme detail and this gave me the grounding for my future skills, as a commercial artist. I’m completely self-taught and motivated, with no formal College or University training. When i left school i naively showed some of my drawings and paintings to the art director of a local national greetings card company. I remember all my drawings and paintings were wrapped and carried in plastic carrier bags! Goodness knows what he thought of the presentation, but the strength of my work pulled me through. This was an important step in my development as an artist because i was thrown into the deep end. This was the start of a long career in the greetings card business. I was fortunate and delighted to have my work published as signed limited edition prints. This was very exciting for me because it gave me a chance to express myself differently from my greeting’s card work. Also during this period i had exhibitions in London and New York, which helped expose my work further. My favourite time to think of idea’s is walking to work with my ipod. Music for me reveals emotions and images from deep inside. It’s quite a powerful source of energy for my mind and travel everywhere with music on tap. I also observe people going about there everyday lives. Sometimes while I'm in the car i will see something, write the idea down and draw it later. I don’t want to forget those important human moments we all take for granted. If i can make a distinction, my greetings card work is often the result of a collaborative process, whereas my personal work is entirely self-motivated. This is who i am, and guides where i want to go with my future painting. more...