Biography
Specializing in Western paintings, Paul Van Ginkel has been a fine art painter for over 40 years. With over 2100 paintings created so far his work can be found in private and corporate collections around the world. Prior to earning a Masters of Fine Arts degree at Syracuse University in New York, he attended the Alberta College of Art in Calgary from 1979 to 1983. He has received many awards and distinctions for his work, has been featured in a variety of magazine and newspaper articles as well as films, videos and two documentaries. This is his 21st Calgary Stampede exhibition (the first one was in 1991) which has been instrumental in shaping his career. He painted the 2007 Stampede poster and to celebrate 100 years of chuckwagon racing at the Stampede, in 2023 he was commissioned to create the painting “History in the Dust”. It was made into a 16 by 28 foot mural on the north side of the Nutrien Centre on Stampede park and is also available in limited edition print. Despite being on all Social Media Platforms the best source for his work is his new website PaulVanGinkel.com.
Artist Statement
“I’m committed to a life of creating images. My primary goal is to master the art of painting and increasingly develop the ability to convey my passion for the subjects I explore. These paintings are intended to document my diverse experiences in life and intimately express what inspires me. I expect my painting “style” to continue to evolve as I strive to express how I feel about the subject I’m focussed on. I’m rarely preoccupied with technique, rather, I allow the painting’s subject, expression and voice to dictate the type of “visual life or language” it should have. I feel each painting is a creative expression similar to a piece of music, dance performance or poetry. For me, the symbolic ritual of signing the painting represents the completion of the piece, however, also the beginning of its long journey through an unknown future.”