P a u l B a l m e rC I T Y S C A P E S

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P a u l B a l m e rC I T Y S C A P E S

Though his newest works capture the cityscapes of his current home in New York, Paul

Balmer’s unexpected color combinations and primitive, earthy shapes are markedly

influenced by his roots in South Africa and Australia. Whether drenched in evocative

palettes of vermillion and ochre, or awash in subtle shades of gray and verdigris, his

urban structures seem to both effuse and refract light, lending an ethereal, almost

organic feel to the compositions. Often choosing a removed, elevated perspective,

Balmer recreates the City as a mythical, timeless setting for romantic narratives.

The dreamy, meditative mood of these paintings belies a powerfully intensive process:

Balmer’s heavily worked canvases are wrought in thick layers of oil, then carefully

sanded when dry. “I use a brush and burnisher, rubber rollers and spatulas,” he notes,

“but the most fun comes from power tools: my disk sander and Dremel are used as

much as the paintbrush.” 

Through this simple yet inventive technique, he evokes a stunning sense of depth and

tactility, imbuing the iconic skylines with an anomalous and wondrous serenity. His

intention, he says, is to “break up any regularity of line and shape,” and “give the paintings

an element of controlled randomness.” The results are exquisite, and always surprising.

With an artistic energy that pays tribute to Cy Twombly and Jean-michel Basquiat,

Balmer deftly explores the area between controlled representation and spontaneous

abstraction, aiming to make his paintings “as abstract as possible, without losing the

essence of the scene.” In fact, this grasp of essence is precisely what is so striking about

his work, drawing the viewer irresistibly into the utopian realm of his creation, a place

where it is still possible to find silence and contemplation.

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“ r A n D o M n e s s , i t ’ s A L L A b o U t c o n t r o L L e D r A n D o M n e s s .

You set it up so mistakes will happen; they can be erased or kept or form the basis for another start. I work

on many paintings simultaneously and often don’t know which direction they may go in. It’s somewhat of an

exploration and you can travel down that road and see where it takes you. Experimentation is a fundamental

part of the process for me. letting accidents happen is the fine line between craftsmanship and freedom.”

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PAIDsOUtH sAN FrANCIsCO

pErMIt NO. 655

451 WEST BrOADWAY | NEW YOrk, NY 10021

P a u l B a l m e rC I T Y S C A P E S

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