Always stretching himself to experiment with the medium, Paul Brand searched for fresh and original ways to communicate through imagery, never allowing himself to relax into predictable, commercially safe methods of producing work.
At the same time, he was also always trying to create the illusion of a third dimension on the flat two-dimensional painting surface, canvas, board, hessian, by means of contrast, moiré effect and flicker offered by unusual materials.
As well as painting in oil, acrylic and watercolours, Paul was interested in many other art forms, notably mosaic, fresco, lino and woodcuts. He had earlier illustrated books, and some of his later paintings were more in the way of illustration, notably “Peer Gynt”. To make his mosaic “The Adoration of the Shepherds” he made his own tesserae, some from clay which he fired himself, and some from glass, which he cut to fit. For the frescoes, having no suitable wall he mixed a lime wash solution which he applied to wood.
He was also keen on pottery and at one time he made his own wheel. However, while many crafts caught his attention for weeks or months at a time, he would always return to painting.
Always stretching himself to experiment with the medium, Paul Brand searched for fresh and original ways to communicate through imagery, never allowing himself to relax into predictable, commercially safe methods of producing work.
At the same time, he was also always trying to create the illusion of a third dimension on the flat two-dimensional painting surface, canvas, board, hessian, by means of contrast, moiré effect and flicker offered by unusual materials.
His work had developed from figurative realistic painting to a more exciting style using colour in a bold new way. Always interested in colour theory he developed his “squares” technique which gives the paintings an almost pixellated effect but predating digital images by two decades. At first, he painted every square the same size, but soon expanded this and loosened up and combined it with conventional painting, and also with other geometric shapes, notably the hexagon.
As well as painting in oil, acrylic and watercolours, Paul was interested in many other art forms, notably mosaic, fresco, lino and woodcuts. He had earlier illustrated books, and some of his later paintings were more in the way of illustration, notably “Peer Gynt”. To make his mosaic “The Adoration of the Shepherds” he made his own tesserae, some from clay which he fired himself, and some from glass, which he cut to fit. For the frescoes, having no suitable wall he mixed a lime wash solution which he applied to wood.
He was also keen on pottery and at one time he made his own wheel. However, while many crafts caught his attention for weeks or months at a time, he would always return to painting.
