Paul Donaghy

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Born in Portadown in 1964, Paul studied Art & Design at the University of Ulster , graduating with an honours degree in Illustration and Design in 1986.

He ran a successful graphic design company, before deciding
to paint full time in 2004.

Working much with palette knife, his paintings are characterised by vigorous slashes of colour along with a concern for his medium, with highlights of heavy impasto on areas where pigment is otherwise barely staining the canvas. Paul combines colours in a way that brings harmony and
equilibrium. In his paintings texture works with colour; a touch of red under painting may show through white, the outline of a black form revealing a lower layer of green. The thickness of the paint itself is sculptural and sensuous.

Donaghy searches for the essential in the architectural organisation of the picture plane. His compositions are both abstract and real. For example, the vase on the table is seen in a full frontal view, yet the table itself is often painted from a different perspective, that of looking down from above. The rules of perspective are broken to facilitate the organisation of geometric forms - the balance and rhythm of pure shapes.

Today, Paul Donaghy is emerging as an artist at the forefront of modern painting in Ireland . His subjects, and variations on themes are classical in nature and refer to masters such as Cezanne, Morandi, De Staël and Matisse while acknowledging the work of The Scottish Colourists and such Irish painters as Scott and Collis.

Paul has exhibited widely in solo and group shows throughout Ireland and the UK . He has also taken on numerous commissions and his paintings are held in collections, both private and corporate in Ireland , Europe and U.S.A.

His work is published worldwide through The Art Group Limited, London whose numerous clients include IKEA, Habitat, The Tate Gallery, Vogue and Disney.