Paul G. Oxborough

I have an art historical equation for you: Impressionism + Photorealism + Baroque = what? Answer: Paul G. Oxborough. A stalwart practitioner of light diffused painterliness, the academically-trained Oxborough returns to Cavalier Galleries to present his newest iteration of paintings since his late-2023 show, Recent Works. Over 25 paintings line the walls that are each enclosed within fashionable black frames that ultimately draw out the light in their compositions.

Oxborough’s brushwork masterfully blends the immediacy of Impressionism with the light-dark tonal contrasts of Baroque with the finely detailed, surface finesse of Photorealism. Genre scenes - images of everyday life - form the crux of his work, both within and outside this exhibition. The majority of the paintings here are set in luxuriously sumptuous restaurants, cafes, bars, and hotels along with a few others in domestic and street settings. 

These eye-level compositions feel ever-present and tangible to the point where you could almost hear the clinking of wine glasses, smell a succulent meal, or taste a medium-rare sirloin steak. The truthfulness of these scenes makes them the 21st Century spiritual successor to 17th Century Dutch & Flemish tavern and market paintings or French Impressionist Édouard Manet’s masterpiece, A Bar at the Folies-Bergère. 

Something else that Oxborough achieves that I find does not get acknowledged enough among the works of great painters is his ability to evoke the environment that lies beyond the frame. These images are so sensorially enticing that they left me hungering to see the rest of Oxborough’s world according to each respective canvas - foyers, coat checks, elevators, or the exteriors of haute cuisine establishments. Oxborough possesses an impressive knack for infusing a scene with an abundance of visual flavor that is as appetizing as the fine food and drinks depicted in his dimly lit, suave restaurant and bar settings. Moreover, evocations of pleasure, relaxation, and coziness also naturally exude in the hotel and bedroom scenes. 

His 2023 exhibition hooked me in and now, having seen his latest series, I am even more engrossed by the elegantly impressionistic brushwork of Paul G. Oxborough. When I spoke with Bill Burns, Director of Sales at Cavalier Galleries, he described Oxborough as an example of “world-class talent” in contemporary art, a sentiment with which I completely agree.

Liam Otero for WHITEHOT MAGAZINE, May 11, 2025

Week in Reviews: Paul G. Oxborough New Works at Cavalier Galleries, Chelsea