High Artist Spotlight: Paul Hilario

Paul paints visual narratives. He tries to create stories with themes that range from the blissful to the brooding. Typically, his compositions are laden with common and personal symbolism. His works seem to have disconnected elements but they are in fact linked in the way that he sees them. To the audience, however, they are like puzzles; open to varied personal interpretations.

Paul doesn’t like to confine himself in a box. Some days he paints social commentaries. Other days he just paints his personal observations of issues that pertain to almost anything under the sun - this can be political, social, environmental, religious, cultural, and even agricultural. Paul tries to paint realities in, out, and of life.

For painting methods, Paul prefers to use a modified byzantine-era painting technique that helps him create layers of colors developed thru multiple glazing. Shadow colors are richer, hard and soft edges have increased contrast, and he is able to create a sense of melodic feel to the painting.

It’s an often repeated story, almost a cliché, but discovering where his heart and mind truly belong was a process of almost four decades. He never really planned to be a painter but that was his destiny after all. It was a calling he couldn't resist.

Aside from the Philippines, Paul’s works have found their way to Australia, Canada, Denmark, Dubai, Germany, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Switzerland, UK, and the USA.