Paul Samson
Painting

I am inspired by the work of the Masters: Picasso, Cezanne and Vermeer whose influence comes through in my style and subject matter. I am currently fascinated by the power of relationship, particularly between women.

I continue to explore complex composition in some paintings but am also experimenting with greater simplicity in others. A softer brush stroke brings light to my work while my love of colour shows more clarity.

Whilst living in England in my early forties, I had time to develop art as my primary creative outlet. After leaving Heatherley’s School of Fine Art in Chelsea, London, I began a fruitful six year student/ teacher relationship with Israel Zohar, a contemporary artist of international standing who teaches in the old renaissance style. During this time, I accepted portrait commissions and sold still life paintings from my London home.

Returning to New Zealand in 2003, I taught and sold from my garden studio in Kerikeri. In 2013, my wife and I moved to Cromwell where I continued to paint, exhibit and sell locally. In 2021 we returned to the north, living once again in Kerikeri, closer to the many women in my whanau.