| Paul Darley
was born in Norwich in 1958. Despite being a highly proficient
art student at school Paul initially decided to follow
a career outside the arts. He began to paint seriously
again at the age of 21 and became a full-time artist at
the age of 28. Initially Paul supplemented his income
by designing theatre sets and working during the summer
season as a lighting engineer and assistant stage manager
at his local theatre. Since 1989 he has been based in
the Norfolk coastal resort of Cromer. The town and its
surroundings feature strongly in much of Paul’s
work.
Paul’s early professional work consisted mainly
of watercolours but he soon began to concentrate upon
painting in oils, a medium he has favoured since 1989.
Among the artists Paul lists as his influences are notable
fellow East Anglian John Constable, Bonnard, Degas,
Sickert and Monet. Like many of the great Impressionists,
Paul paints almost exclusively “en plein air,”
working quickly and spontaneously to capture the changing
light of the local landscape or the everyday activities
of the fishermen and holidaymakers in his local town. |
