Welcome to
Paul Shain Art

Bio

Paul Shain began sketching and painting after he retired from engineering. The first thing people notice about his art are the colors. He enjoys the work of the Fauvists, Surrealists, Impressionists, and Expressionists.

Born in California, Paul has lived in Houston off and on since he was in the first grade. He was educated as a chemical engineer at MIT and UC Berkeley. Like art, he sees engineering as a creative field in which he starts with a blank sheet of paper and creates a design. After retiring from the oil and gas industry, he enrolled in a basic drawing class. Before that class ended, he decided to take a five-week (post-COVID) European vacation. He began by attending an urban sketching workshop in Provence where he started painting (urban sketching). He was hooked!

Paul is fortunate to live near Houston’s Museum District. Thus, he has access to The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and The Menil Collection. This allows him to view art from many eras, locations, and genres. His first significant exposure to art was his late aunt’s art collection. He is pleased to have a few pieces from that collection.

Paul has painted or sketched on three continents and looks forward to visiting or revisiting the others.

Artist's statement

I use pencils, ink, watercolor, and acrylic to create art. I like bright, vibrant color combinations. My work includes abstract, impressionistic, animal portraits, and urban sketches. The more humor involved the better.

When I retired, I took a drawing class. I found an urban sketcher whose style I liked and went to one of his workshops in France. I took more classes with the Art League of Houston and the Watercolor Art Society-Houston.

I enjoy the problem-solving aspects of art (how do I get the work to look the way I want it to). No doubt, this contributed to the success of my engineering career and love of crossword puzzles.