Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1010195
"I took that as a sign that I needed to move here," Ventura recalls. "But I couldn't just stop working, so I decided to fully commit to something I had done since I was three years old…paint." Ventura's mother was a painter and encour- aged her son to take up the craft. "She went out one day and said to me, 'Don't go in that room,' meaning the room she painted in." That was a bit of reverse psychology and of course, young Paul went in and star ted painting "some Humpty Dumpty thing, I think." Over the years, his work developed into a realistic style likened to "Andrew Wyeth themes done with Fuji film." But, disliking to waste paint, he would dab unused, fast-drying acrylics onto a black canvas at the end of painting sessions. "After a while, thick shapes and colors devel- oped," Ventura recalls. "Once I put borders around everything, this new style erupted." His work has focused on San Francisco cityscapes, but he's been inspired to produce pieces depicting scenes of Dallas, Texas, as well. "Ventura means 'future,'" the artist says. "I've spent my whole career getting people to where they want to be in their futures." Now it's his turn. Ventura's work is represented in Carmel by The New Masters Gallery on Dolores between Ocean and 7th. 831/625-1511 or www.newmastersgallery.com or www.paulventuraartist.com. 272 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S U M M E R / F A L L 2 0 1 8 Painting has been a lifelong passion for Ventura—he started at three — and he always listens to music as he works. "When you look closely at the paint- ings, you can almost tell the kind of music I was listening to at the time," he says. His work is represented in Carmel by New Masters Gallery.