Story & Lesson Highlights with Paul Normansell of Dursley, Gloucestershire England

Paul Normansell shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Good morning Paul, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What is a normal day like for you right now?
Wake up, get kids ready for school, walk the dog, exercise, have breakfast and then get painting!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Im fine artist who works with gloss paint on aluminium sheets. I create portraits from dots of paint. I’m currently working on a portrait of Liam Gallagher from Oasis.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
A kid obsessed with football who wanted to be a footballer. I then realised that wasn’t going to happen and started to enjoy art more and showed I had some talent in that subject.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
When I left university I was lucky enough to get approached by several galleries and things were great. But after a few years things slowed down and I wasn’t earning much so it was getting to the point where I thought I’d have to get another job. Around this time I was very fortunate to have my work shown in GQ magazine and the rock band The Killers saw it. This led to me creating the artwork for their album Day & Age. This helped to get my work seen by a wider audience which really elevated my profile.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
My family and dog Ziggy. I love painting and creating new ideas but nothings better than having a break with family to help recharge the batteries to go again.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you think people will most misunderstand about your legacy?
The time it takes to create my paintings. I’ve done it now for 25years and it has taken its toll on my body. The position I’m in to create the paintings causes lots of pain to my neck and back, but as they say you have to suffer for your art. I think lots of people see my art and don’t realise how they are created. With digital art on the increase people probably think it’s done digitally.

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