London-based painter Paul is best known for her emotionally charged portrait paintings of intimate subjects. As windows into complex inner worlds, Paul’s work captures a sense of quiet contemplation and offers a vision of interiority through a visceral rawness and immediacy. Fundamentally, Paul’s works are about the acts of being seen and seeing, being looked at and looking. Her paintings resonate with distinctive application of color, texture, and brushstrokes that explore the complexities and nuances of human connections. Her restrained color palette focuses on the subtle variations and tonalities of light, color, and shadows to convey mood and emotion. Nature is often the backdrop, but in the newer work is foregrounded to add symbolic layers to her emotional narratives. Celia Paul, “Painter Seated in her Studio,” 2023, Oil on canvas, 72" x 58" [HxW]. Courtesy of the artist, Victoria Miro Gallery and Vielmetter Los Angeles © Celia Paul Photo credit: Brica Wilcox