Paul actually turned down a place at art college in order to study for a degree in History and Education although later he began attending classes with academician Fred Cuming. During the 1970s and 1980s he produced paintings for two galleries in Kent, as well as several commissioned works including pictures for Thomas Howell Kiewit International, New York loss adjustors Axis, CTI of Dusseldorf, and for one of the chief executives at Canary Wharf plc.

Since 1996 Paul has exhibited at the Linda Blackstone Galley (www.lindablackstone.com), and with this gallery his work has been shown at several art fairs including London, Manchester, Glasgow, Dublin, Cannes and Chelsea. Last year the gallery mounted a 40-painting solo exhibition of his pictures.

In 2005 fine art publishers Washington Green (www.washingtongreen.co.uk), probably the biggest in the UK, invited him to join their portfolio of artists; and since then they have produced some limited edition prints of Paul's pictures. "It's one thing hoping to find an individual who's willing to purchase a single painting, but quite another to find a company having enough faith in one's work, willing to buy it and then to reproduce it in print form."

Inspiration for Paul's work is drawn variously from the tangle of human relationships. Frequently narrative in style and Parisian in its setting the paintings reflect his long-lived love affair with the city of artists. "Paris is the springboard for ideas - the romantic flavour of the city.  The paintings tell a story, or at least a fragment of it: moods within pictures vary, but generally the ideas are hopeful, the future is assured and optimistic."