Bio — All About Paul

Art

My artistic style is varied and eclectic, drawing inspiration from the things that bring me joy...nature, science, and nerd culture. I simply love to create and expand my horizons on this wacky, wild, weird journey through life while using materials like insects, wood, glass, and paper as my mediums.

Background

Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, I grew up going to craft shows as a kid and always had a penchant for trying new hobbies. Combined with a 'measure twice, cut once' mentality when it comes to science and engineering, my background has enabled me to have a rather diverse skillset that melds building and making things with a meticulous and artistic flair. I'm forever grateful to the beautiful, creative, wonderful people in my life who've helped and inspired me on my journey. I fully embrace the jack of all trades, master of none lifestyle and strive to keep learning about the next shiny thing in the corner of my eye.

I started pinning insects 15 years ago when a friend took an entomology course in college and taught me about this tedious and delicate hobby. The barrier to entry was low in that all I really needed was a butterfly net, pins, and some forceps. Mother nature does a wonderful job in creating these beautiful and necessary creatures, and my art simply attmpts to showcase what nature has created. 

All of my insects are purchased from sustainable sources and are fully compliant with CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) in order to protect endangered species and help ensure wild populations aren't exploited.

I stumbled upon quilling many years ago and loved the three-dimensional aspect of how a thin strip of paper, glued down in various geometric patterns and swirls could be so captivating. I purchased several professionally-made pieces for my personal art collection yet never delved into the medium until relatively recently where, despite copious amounts of papercuts, I dove in head first to explore this oddly pensive and meditative art form.

As romantic as it is to meander along a shoreline in the hunt for glass that has been beaten and smoothed by the waves and currents over countless years, my back doesn't have the tolerance to stay hunched over for that long. Lo and behold, you can make faux sea glass at home with the help of a rock tumbler and a fraction of the time you'd otherwise need for nature to make glass smooth! Glass is cheap, available, and comes in a variety of colors from which I can curate and collect a veritable palette to create with.

Wood is everywhere, and using it as a canvas upon which to draw simply by burning it is just another fun and accessible way to incorporate nature into my artistic interests...plus I get to smell like campfire. This endeavor kind of fell into my lap very incrementally. A family member got a woodburning pen as a gift and used it sparingly, so this artform was always in my periphery. However, once I got into woodworking and developed the relevant skills, it seemed like logical next step to put all my wood scraps to use.

Covid left an indelible mark on all of our lives. In order to cope with the crippling isolation, we all turned to new hobbies to keep our minds occupies and our sanity in check. While some people got into sourdough bread and indoor house plants, I decided to channel my inner Nick Offerman and foray into woodworking. But why make charcuterie boards and coasters when you can instead start making custom furniture for yourself?! So that's exactly what I did after endless rabbit holes of Youtube tutorials and painstaking trial and error, I now posess the rudimentary skills to no longer be reliant on IKEA to furnish my household.

As a midwestern millenial, my childhood was filled with many board game nights and fond memories of stealing from the bank during Monopoly. Fast forward to after college when I discovered the veritable board game renaissance that has occured right under my nose that has since caused my collection to explode in number. Game designers compete to not only make a good game but also one that is aeshetically captivating, leading to many including intricate sculpted miniatures to up the ante. However, these are often just injection molded plastic that needs a steady hand and extremely small paint brushes to make beautiful. I'm not one to shy away from a challenge.