Paul Alcock

I impressionistic coastal, urban and landscape scenes.
Within each painting I aim to create a portrait of a particular moment with a sense of the life and atmosphere of that particular time.

My work is created from my experience of looking and observing the world around me, choosing subjects and places that appeal to me, often I’m inspired by the effects of light on different surfaces.
I either work directly in front of my subject painting “en plein air” or I take reference photos and make sketch and then work from these. Sometimes I'll use a combination of these methods.
I'm fortunate to live on the Essex coast near the Thames Estuary which offers me a vast array of inspiring subjects locally as well as giving me easy access to London and the South East of England.
I hope that people connect with my work in a way that is personal to them.
A big influence on my work has been the work over the last fifteen years has been the work of impressionists with their emphasis on observing and painting modern life from direct observation and with an emphasis on recording atmosphere and light with lively brushwork. I’ve always lived in England and was born in Midlands and then my moved family to Essex when I was 8 years old. I...

I first got interested in art around the age of 8, learnt to draw by copying Disney cartoons and illustrations. By 10yrs I’d started painting with my first set of oil paints, experimenting with those and then later with gouache and acrylics. On leaving school at 16 I was fortunate to be funded to go on a two week residential course for youngsters in Essex. Following that I my family encouraged me to take on an engineering apprentice which I completed whilst at the same this time studying art at evening classes. On completing the apprenticeship I studied art full time for the next 4 years completing a foundation course at Southend College of Art and Technology in 1983 and then a degree in Fine Art Painting at Camberwell School of Art in 1986.

I have completed many private and corporate commissions over the last few years including Essex Partnership University NHS Trust, South Essex Homes and London Gateway port. My work also hangs in many private collections in England and throughout the world
I’ve been a member of Leigh Art Trail since 2009 and exhibited most years with the trail ever since. I’ve also exhibited with a number of commercial galleries including recently with the Well House Gallery in Horndon on the Hill, Essex.