Sometimes you run across work that really hits you and you wonder, “How have I never heard of this guy before?”
The world of art is full of such people, artists who while popular in their time never have made that shift into the ongoing popular consciousness. Perhaps their style was out of step or out of favor in their time or perhaps they just never caught the big break. One of my favorite examples is the artist Paul Sample.
The poor guy doesn’t even warrant a Wikipedia page of his own.
I first saw a piece of his a number of years ago in a traveling exhibit at the Arnot Art Museum, in Elmira. I can’t remember the title or even all the details. I just recall being struck by the composition and the way he framed the painting with the elements at the picture’s edge (much like he has done in the top painting, Celebration, shown here). There was an emergence from dark to light that really presented the central part of the scene in a strong way.
I immediately went home and integrated this idea of his into my own work. Over the years I’ve come across other examples of his work (I’ve never been able to locate the piece I saw those years ago) and am always visually excited by them. The compositions have a wonderful triangular quality where everything more less pointed to center of the panel, allowing the eye to settle easily into the painting. His colors have the richness and dark undertones that really attract me as well.
As I’ve said, the art world is full of any number of Paul Samples. They may be less known and less loved than the brighter stars in their galaxy but their work remains alive and vital, full of the potential to influence even to this day.
Give them a chance…
Thank you for your kind comments about the work of Paul Sample. Like you, I feel his work has not received the attention it perhaps deserves. I’m interested in seeing more of his work.
Paul Sample JP
Salisbury, Wiltshire
UK
There is more of his work online and, like many artists, there are different periods and levels in his work. He is well-known as a watercolorist but I am more drawn to the work that is more like that shown in the blog.
Thanks for commenting. Is the name a mere coincidence?
I love running across the obscure genius. What fun. Sample’s work is truly powerful stuff. His compositions are so dense. I just love it.
I like that– dense. Thanks, Madara.
Wonderful stuff, Gary. Thanks. While Sample appears to owe alot to Grant Wood, his compositions are complex and dynamic in their own way. So much of Regionalist art is taken for granted. It really persisted well beyond the 1930s and well beyond the trio of artists (Wood, Benton, Curry) who are the only ones deemed worthy of study.
Thanks, Paul. There’s a real dynamic quality in his work and that of many of the Regionalists that really draws me in. It may be that they focus on expression rather pure representation. Whatever the case, they continue to shine for me.
There’s a Wiki page for him now – I’ve just visited it. I discovered him via Pinterest while searching for works by George Ault, another great but forgotten American artist.
Yes, Ault is another wonderful artist. I admire his work very much.
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