Alan Paddy
About the artist
Alan Paddy
“The mind is its own place and, in itself can make a heaven of hell or a hell of heaven.” – John Milton
Art is not an answer—it is the question. The in-between of chaos and order, light and shadow, beauty and the abyss. My work seeks not to comfort, but to confront; to explore the psyche, to examine the human condition, and to give form to the unseen.
Alan Paddy
Biography
Alan Paddy is a self-taught Catalan artist based in London, UK. A figurative painter with a deep fascination for the human psyche, his work blends classical techniques from the Baroque and Renaissance era with contemporary urban influences.
Rooted in the traditions of the Old Masters, Alan works primarily in oil paint, often employing traditional grisaille and glazing methods to create depth, drama, and texture with a very limited palette, sticking to the Zorn / Apelles or monochrome palettes. His paintings depict figures in the shape of statues as historical symbols and archetypes, reframing their context to explore new meaning.
Alan’s art carries an atmospheric intensity reminiscent of the Hellenistic aesthetic—an exploration of the darker facets of the human condition. His compositions, often disturbing and unsettling, are a visual dialogue with the philosophies of Carl Jung, Friedrich Nietzsche, Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Seneca, and Lao Tzu, among others.
Beyond classical influences, Alan’s work is shaped by the dark, hypnotic and avant-garde sounds of London’s underground techno scene. The urban landscape of Hackney Wick, with its fusion of street art, gentrification and artistic rebellion, also serves as a source of inspiration, feeding into the contrast of his work.
Alluding to the technique of contemporary painters such as Roberto Ferri, Jeremy Mann, and Jordi Díaz Alamà Alan invites the spectator to explore each painting as a journey of self-introspection and meditation into the citadel of the psyche and human sub-concious shadow.
The poem will always sound beautiful in the mind. Resistance begins when we try to turn it into words, and Art is an uncomfortably honest reflection of what we wish to express. Vision is always ahead of execution, and the challenge lies in narrowing the gap between these. But as skills grow, so does ambition, and the pursuit of this balance continues endlessly. Each painting being a step forward, yet never quite reaching the horizon. This is the game. Always carrying forward some unresolved issue as the seed crystal for the next work.
“Art is a spiritual act” – Robert Henri.
Art happens when you play with rhythm and rhyme. The Artwork itself however is only a by-product. The true objective is to reach a state of mind where Art becomes inevitable—a state of play, a state of being fully present. In these moments, Art is not a choice but a necessity, whether through a brushstroke, a written word, or a gesture of the body. The outcome is secondary to the experience of being present. I believe this to hold true to the concept of Flow introduced by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi described Flow as: “A state of complete immersion in an activity where an individual is so absorbed that everything else fades away. The ego falls away, time flies and every action, movement and thought follows inevitable from the previous one, like playing jazz. You are using your skills to the utmost”.
Beauty is often assumed to be a fixed, objective truth that resides in the subject. This is a flawed dogma: beauty does not reside in the subject itself—but in the expression, the gesture. Beautifully horrible and horribly beautiful are two antithesis which hold true.
Alan Paddy
Artist Statement
A Full Month of 3D Gallery Digital Art Magic!
We’re thrilled to present a full month-long digital 3D gallery exhibition by the incredible Alan Paddy.
Browse and buy all of Alan Paddy’s available artwork on our website. You can browse and bring a piece of this extraordinary exhibition home!
Get to Know the Artist
Watch our full interview with Alan on our YouTube channel to dive into his inspirations, process, and the stories behind the art.
