Paul Buford – Vintage Watercolor Paintings of Antique Cars and More

chevy antique car paul buford Paul E. Buford

Vintage Watercolor Paintings of Antique Cars and More

Brandon, MS, USA

ecstatic, wacky, bearded

My name is Paul Buford. I'm a watercolor artist and architect living in Brandon, MS with my beautiful wife and daughter.

Rusty 50's Bel Air - teal rusty chevy bel air ©Paul Buford

I am a Christian and very blessed to be able to work with some awesome kids at our church.

I always liked to draw as a kid, but was introduced to different media in junior college and my studies in architecture. I never considered myself an artist until recently when I began producing more detailed and meaningful works and receiving favorable responses.

STYLE

I don't necessarily subscribe to a particular style, but I love realism.

MEDIUMS

I've worked in oil, acrylic, ceramics, etc, but I love watercolor above all. The process of staining paper to create the final image is something that just really speaks to me. It's like controlled chaos.

vito motorcycle paul buford TECHNIQUE

I come across an object/scene that intrigues me and study it, and study color and shape adjacencies to determine if it will be an appropriate layout as a painting. Sometimes I will trace the scene onto the paper to assure proportions are correct, because it would be terrible to ruin a painting before you even began and not know it until you are almost done. I use a lot of wet on wet to begin a piece, which gives a good "base" to work from. Later I add more rigid details to crisp up the image and create definition and "pop".

Fat Boy - white harley motorcycle ©Paul Buford

THEMES

I typically like to paint things that are forgotten or left to weather. When you find a great old car in the woods that someone just walked away from you have to ask "why" and "what happened here". These scenes have histories that we will never know about, which gives us the chance to use our imaginations and create our own stories about what happened.

INSPIRATION

From real scenes I stumble across. I will see an item that almost "begs" to be painted, and I try to frame it in my mind and determine if it will translate into a successful painting.

tobacco barn paul buford Why do you create art?

I have always been attracted to old dilapidated cars or buildings. The funny thing is I could never answer why I am attracted to them...well, that changed once I started painting.

Tobacco Barn - barns and tractor ©Paul Buford

It is because of the history, the unknown personal private history, behind the subjects and scenes. Who fell in love here? Whose heart was broken here? What life changing events happened at this place in an individuals life? These are the imaginary scenarios that drive me.

How often do you paint?

I try to paint each night. Unfortunately only working a little each day limits the number of pieces I can create, but it's worth it on a personal level to paint however much I can.

What is the best painting you ever created?

willys antique paul buford "Willys" - I tried some new techniques in this piece that I felt were very successful and have found their ways into my more current pieces as well. It was the first pricey piece that was purchased by a stranger. That was pretty important to me.

Willys - old jeep ©Paul Buford

What role does the artist play in society?

It's so huge. Art is everywhere, design is everywhere, literally. It's role touches everything, from mundane everyday items to the most expensive paintings in the world.

Art Promotion

Facebook has been a great way to reach out. I believe the other way I've reached a good number of people has been Etsy.

Influences

Chuck Close is a favorite of mine.

bump run paul buford Contemporary Artist Recommendation

I absolutely admire the work of Grzegorz Wróbel. He creates paintings where you can nearly feel the atmosphere around the subjects. I've rarely seen anything like it.

Funny Story

When I was in Junior College a couple of buddies and I went to WalMart to get some stuff so we could go to a Halloween costume party. Well, my genius idea was to be a cowboy, so I bought a cap gun and decided to open it in the truck on the way back to school. A cop saw me playing with it....one thing led to another.... and we ended up with three cops, guns drawn, yelling at us. All our hands were flying up yelling "IT'S JUST A TOY!!!". Luckily one of the officers knew who I was and he sent us on our way. They confiscated my toy, suggested that I do not come to the station to reclaim my property, and I was a gunless cowboy the next day at the party.

fast food rc cola Where do you see your art in 10 years?