“There's a dry ironic twist to Paul’s paintings that give the work — while realistic — a postmodern feeling of reflection, observation and cultural critique. Somewhere between the Cohen Brothers and David Lynch but on canvas, not celluloid.” — Dr. David Salvage, artist, art critic
Paul D. Fuentes is a graduate of The Tyler School of Art and Architecture (BFA). He worked as a designer, creative director and film director in New York.
Fuentes’ paintings blend modern life and pop culture references with conceptual and technical precision. His experience in advertising and directing lends a stylish, pop sensibility to the work while the representational style pays homage to the classicists. The results are striking, colorful paintings depicting modern life, love and how we live today.
The Kiss Series depicts fully clothed couples in passionate embrace. Their wardrobe and hairstyles are distinctly retro. The passion seems at once feverish and vacuum sealed in B movie convention. In the Selfie Series, his subjects snap cell phone portraits in precarious situations: a stylish woman takes a photo in the desert by her wrecked Rolls Royce while another holds a latte and snaps her picture in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro as a lion waits nearby. Safety is relinquished for a moment of ego gratification that will be posted and forgotten. His celebrity portraits create obvious and sometimes ironic illusions. Putin, posed like St. Francis, wears a T-shirt popular with fitness buffs, “Sun’s Out, Guns Out.” In this setting, however, the statement is quite literal. Replacing familiar contexts with new ones, Fuentes prompts viewers to create their own narratives. His Couples Series explores identity and fame through improbable pairings of the famous: Queen Elizabeth & Burger King are the new royalty; Kim Kardashian & Kim Jong Un represent interchangeable Kims; Bill Clinton & Wilma Flintsone pair up as a dating duo.
Fuentes’ paintings have been shown in galleries on the east and west coasts including Sotheby’s New York, The White Room Gallery in East Hampton, Corridor Contemporary in Philadelphia and the nationally juried Art In Politics show at Touchstone Gallery in Washington D.C. Two works were selected for the 30th International Juried Exhibition at Viridian Gallery, New York. His portrait of Hillary Clinton, My Heart New Opened, was featured in Creative Quarterly Journal and published in The Village Voice. His illustrations have appeared in ads and publications including The New York Times. His TV work has been honored by CLIO, the Art Directors Club, The International Film and Television Awards, The Belding Awards, PROMAX, The New York Festivals and others.
Statement
Modern themes interest me-- the disposable versus the timeless, the cult of celebrity. In an increasingly impersonal world where one can be followed or cancelled, I try to capture small moments of humanity. It may come from my training as an actor but gestures— a look, an eyebrow raise, the turn of a head— speak volumes and I want to capture those moments with paint.. Like an arresting film still, I’d like my work to hint at a bigger story; a story that the viewer creates. Combining contemporary themes in a classical style I hope to engage viewers into seeing something beautiful or cool and then have them realize this may be about something else entirely. Classic and modernist painters, advertising and cinematography inform my work.
Gallery representation
The White Room Gallery, East Hampton
Exhibitions
2025 The White Room Gallery, What’s Not to Love, East Hampton, NY, group exhibition
2024 The White Room Gallery, Cryptic, East Hampton, NY, group exhibition
2024 The White Room Gallery On the Edge, East Hampton, NY, group exhibition
2023 The White Room Gallery, Naughty / Nice, East Hampton, NY, group exhibition
2023 Corridor Contemporary, Philadelphia Featured, Philadelphia, PA, group exhibition
2023 The White Room Gallery, Yin Yang, Bridgehampton, NY, group exhibition
2023 OC Arts Center, Subject to Change, solo show, Ocean City, NJ
2022 Era Contemporary Gallery, Legends of the Moon. In collaboration with NASA’s Lunar Codex destined for the moon, Polaris Mission 2023
2022 Corridor Contemporary Gallery, Philadelphia Featured, group exhibition
2021 Corridor Contemporary Gallery, Person to Person: An International Survey of Portraiture, Philadelphia, PA
2020 Alfa Art Gallery, Configured Personas group exhibition, New Brunswick, NJ
2020 Las Laguna Gallery, Portraits, Laguna Beach, CA, group show
2020 Solo show, Portraits & Pop, Ocean City Arts Center, Ocean City, NJ
2019 Viridian Artists Gallery 30th International Juried Exhibition, New York, NY
2019 Philadelphia Sketch Club 11th Annual Juried Exhibition, Philadelphia, PA
2019 Maxum Gallery, Hearts and Minds, Atlantic City, NJ, group exhibition
2019 Newport Beach Annual Art Exhibition, Newport Beach, CA
2018 Sotheby’s Ad Art Show, group exhibition, New York, NY, group exhibition
2016 Touchstone Gallery, Art As Politics National Juried Exhibition, Washington DC
2016 Featured in Creative Quarterly Journal