Workshops: Paul is coordinating a workshop series in Hawaii for Hawaiian Art Journey. His first workshop there will be Jan 9-16 2010. His entire workshop schedule can be found on his website.

Brushes: Jackson paints with nothing but Trekell brushes made specifically for the way he works.

Watercolor always seems to have a soul that other media don't possess; it's translucency and transparency make it one of the most exciting things I know.

What I like to focus on is dramatic light. The way light creates a vibration on an object, how it draws your attention and sends the eye through the composition sparks fascination and motivates me to develop paintings to meet a certain vision. I like to make light move actively around and through a painting. I enjoy painting a variety of subjects, architectural paintings, art glass, landscapes and portraiture, still lifes and exotic animals, but in essence, my true subject is light and it's attendant shadows. (The artist has authored "Painting Spectacular Light Effects in Watercolor" from North Light Books)

The first step is composing the studies into a sketch. From there I produce a more detailed four-value drawing. My watercolor palette usually includes Winsor violet, Winsor blue-green shade, viridian, French ultramarine, burnt sienna, cadmium lemon yellow, cadmium yellow medium, quinacridone gold, cadmium red and a few others. I build up multiple layers of color starting with the lightest, most delicate areas. I focus on an area of the composition, sometimes painting wet-into-wet; it's difficult to paint a wash that features lighter elements with something dark next to it unless you want the dark to bleed into it. I then begin to define the structures or features in the piece and from this point on, doing it in layers, wet-on-dry, so I can get crisp edges and tones that sparkle.In developing the dark colors, I find applying layers of color at half-strength and keep adding until the color value is as dark as I can get it works much better than just blending indigo and violet for a single layer. I like to work all over the painting, treating it as a whole. When one section is drying, I'll go to another. In almost every area, the painting will receive at least two layers of color, even the lightest sections. Because most of my work is rather labor-intensive, it takes longer than the usual watercolor to complete.

Although I often paint realistically, I'm careful not to limit most of the works to fixed meanings. I really enjoy a viewer discovering their own personal interpretation in a painting. I always strive to include a sense of wonder in every piece I do,creating perspectives that are a bit different in scope than the eye would normally see. Every painting should have a life of it's own.

2009

*Crosstown Traffic won the Salis International Award – Northwest Watercolor Society 69th Annual Open Exhibition

*Detour won The Margery Soroka Memorial Award from the American Watercolor Society

*Invited Juror for the 142nd exhibition of the American Watercolor Society

*Elected to the board of the Missouri Watercolor Society

2008

*Featured speaker-International Watercolor Masters Invitational, Lushan , China

*Best of Show & Gold Medal – Texas Watercolor Society National

*Walser Greathouse Medal – 141st Exhibition of the American Watercolor Society

*Honorable Mention – Taos National Exhibition of American Watercolors

*Silver Award – Southern Watercolor Society

*Judge for PaintAmerica's National Parks competition

*Jack Richeson Award – Northwest Watercolor Society Open Exhibition

*Morrison Memorial Award–Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolor

*Best of Show - Missouri Watercolor Invitational

*Best of Show – Keystone National Works on Paper Exhibition

*Gallery Award – Mississippi Grand National Watercolor Exhibition

*Bronze Medal – Montana Watercolor Society National Exhibition

*Invited demonstrator-Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City MO

*Finalist – Artist's Magazine Cover Competition

*Finalist – The Artist's Magazine Annual Competition



Sundance



Crosstown Traffic



Landing Patterns



Neon Rain