Painter Paul Van Ginkel has an affinity for the ‘old west’ and is fascinated with its history, figures and lifestyles of old. His work is well-known and respected within the western art community, and he has been awarded numerous awards and distinctions.

Van Ginkel was born in St. Boniface, Manitoba in 1960 and moved with his family to Calgary, Alberta in 1973. During his childhood, art was always his greatest interest, and after high school, he attended the Alberta College of Art in Calgary. While there, he was offered a position at the Calgary Herald as an illustrator and graphic designer. He held that position while attaining a Masters of Fine Arts degree from Syracuse University in New York. In 1990, after 7 years at the Calgary Herald, he resigned in order to paint full-time.

Maintaining the routine of getting up at 6:30 a.m. and working in the studio of his downtown Calgary loft until 6 p.m., Van Ginkel averages around 90 paintings a year. He most often works in series of over 20 canvases. Early in his career his tendency was to paint in a photo-realistic fashion, but he began taking liberties. His current work is loose and aggressive in style and rooted in pattern and rhythm. He uses large brushes and liberal amounts of paint on his canvases (averaging 40 x 60 inches) but his brushwork is never undisciplined despite its emotional and expressive nature. Often presented unframed with finished edges, his work conveys a sense of expansiveness.

Van Ginkel’s work has been featured in numerous publications including the book Western Traditions – Contemporary Artists of the American West. He was recently chosen by Albuquerque’s Fresco Fine Art Publications as one of the top 38 contemporary western artists.

(click here to read an article about Paul Van Ginkel)

link to images: http://www.mclarryfineart.com/paulvanginkel.html