Paul Zajciw, a Manchester impressionist artist can be viewed at MASA-UK Art Gallery

Impressionism developed in France in the nineteenth century and is based on the practice of painting out of doors and spontaneously ‘on the spot’ rather than in a studio from sketches. Main impressionist subjects were landscapes and scenes of everyday life.

Paul Zajciw, an interior decorator by trade with a specialisation in gaining, marbling and murals, has been involved in art his whole life. His inspiration comes in many forms, such as the complex nature of the human face and form, the changeable nature of the urban and industrial landscape, the relationship between light and shadow or by intricate detail in a piece of art.

I also draw inspiration and influence from the artists who shaped my own work; from the Dutch masters like Rembrandt, Impressionists like Van Gogh or Freud and Bacon. It is the darkness and complexity of these artists and their works that inspire and permeate my own paintings. Dutch Golden Age painting has always formed a significant part of collections of Old Master paintings, itself a term invented in the 18th century to describe Dutch Golden Age artists.

In his work Paul tends to showcase the purity of life, and how life has developed. For example in one of his works he presents Manchester in the XIX century. Rainy, dirty streets, factory's chimneys and oppressed people, waiting for work in front of the factories. He wants to present an image of how the times used to be and how they are now, in which way we, as people, will value more the things we have nowadays.

Manchester XIX, Paul Zajciw, Oil on canvas , 88x122cm

Paul's art will be at the MASA-UK Art Gallery throughout August and you are very welcome to view it Monday to Saturday 10am-5pm or view it on www.masa-uk.co.uk