Today we’d like to introduce you to Doug Paul.
Hi Doug, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in Siesta Key Florida where I enjoyed a life of boating and the beach, but my dad had other plans for me. Instead of sailing and surfing, I was ‘encouraged’ to learn how to fly an airplane at 15.
After I graduated high school, I was then once more encouraged to go to college for a degree in engineering. My mom was an artist and I definitely followed her way of thinking, but dad paid the bills so I followed along.
After an aerospace engineering degree, I obtained a few more related licenses and ultimately worked in aviation for the next 30 years.
Finally, that period of my life was almost over and I could once more pursue illustration and art… thus, I opened Woolf Illustrations. It’s just a little business where I can do my art, get some commissions, and hope not to be a starving artist.
I guess I’m a bit too young to retire so I’m doing everything I can to succeed through marketing, word of mouth, and this whole social media experience.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I went into this business with the hopes I would succeed but knowing the reality that the art world is very tough to break into.
I’ve had a few decent commissions and a few, very few really, sales of my own work, but I think I’m finally getting my name out there. Social media has been a real struggle so I’ve hired a professional marketer and joined Art Storefronts to hedge my bets for success.
It has definitely been a learning curve, painting is much easier than marketing and promoting yourself.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m fortunate that both the left and right sides of my brain play together nicely. This gives me the ability to create technical images with an artistic flair.
I get requests for science fiction and fantasy images as well as aircraft and vehicles of all sorts which I start off clean, but always end up a bit ‘messy’ with extra lines and scribbles. They are definitely a different look and I feel unique to the market. I also create landscapes and many of my commissions are for critters which also end up with this messy, almost mixture of abstract and impressionistic styles.
If requested, I can clean everything up, but to me, the results are just a bit too dull and there are far better artists out there who can do this. I’m proud of this style and hope others will come to like it as well… maybe even seek me out for a unique twist on the ordinary.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I’m always open to commissions and will create pretty much anything requested.
Most of my work is digital and the completed image is uploaded to my Art Storefront and can be printed in a variety of media and sizes from the typical 8×12 to sizes exceeding 6-7 feet or more.
My web address is www.woolfillustrations.com.
My portfolio is at www.dpaulart.com.
Pricing:
- Commissions: $250 and up based on complexity
- Printed images are dictated by the material, size, and mounting methods.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.woolfillustrations.com and www.dpaulart.com
- Instagram: @woolfillustrations
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/Woolf-Illustrations-107762088582080
