Contemporary Fine Art of Santa Barbara

A Master Among Us

Jame Paul Brown

Today, Brown’s artwork continues to reach new levels of inspiration and admiration. If others have been called painters of light, Brown could certainly be coined the “painter of joy.” He lives true to the following introduction that was written about him for the booklet that accompanied his exhibit at the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art in 1996.

James-Paul Brown blends the broad brushwork and vibrant colors of Van Gogh with the strokes and pastel shades of Monet to produce enchanting, passionate masterpieces. With his history as a painter, radio entrepreneur, wine connoisseur, traveler, and reciter of poetry, his life resembles his colorful palette, capturing the beauty of adventure of the human experience. His paintings are windows into an enchanted world blending energy, color and romance, as well as his favorite cities and landscapes.Over thirty two years ago, Dominique Sennelier wrote a letter to James-Paul comparing his paintings to the great French Fauve artist Albert Marquet. A true romantic, Brown adds elements of fantasy, music and mermaids, flowers and fairies to his lyric paintings.
His paintings begin with a pencil under-drawing. This linear plan sets the format of the general composition. Color is then added to enrich, flesh-out and give life to the initial sketch. These vibrant colors are applied with a variety of strokes that vary from short daubs to long threads of paint. The resulting texture of color appears like a rich tapestry.

Among human subjects, he paints those moments when the spirit takes flight and triumphs over the mundane reality of our day-to-day world. His jazz musicians are lost in a reverie of inspired improvisation. His sport paintings show people pushing themselves beyond the limits of ordinary endurance. His ballet scenes show the human body in graceful movement. His romantic paintings conjure a world of dreamy reverie. For James-Paul, the chief trait of being human is the ability to feel. He paints to record the depth and range of our passions and emotions. A deeply sensitive person, he is drawn to emotional moments in the human drama

CORRIDAN GALLERY
125 North Milpas Street, Santa Barbara CA 93103
Hours: Wednesday - Saturday, 11 to 6, or call for other hours
karen@corridan-gallery.com or (805) 966-7939