The Notebook Project –Paul Woods

I first became aware of the Notebook Project in 2012. I was very impressed and surprised by the level of talent, diversity of ideas and general openness to participate in the project. My first conception of what to do with the Moleskine Notebook came after reading a quote from Leonardo da Vinci on the nature and wonder of the human eye. I had subsequently become interested in the eyes of artists as depicted in their self portraits. I decided to take 100 of my favourite painters and depict their eyes only on the each A5 page of the notebook to make a compendium of visual interest. It took me an average of 3 hours for each page and the artworks were executed in a variety of drawing and painting materials. What I found most rewarding was the opportunity to execute the images in so many varied styles, textures and techniques and staying as true as possible to the original depiction. The more modern or abstract images took just as much time and effort to render as the more traditional, academic pieces.

 

Biographical Note

Paul Woods is a Kildare based artist, originally from Co.Louth. He graduated in 1995 from Limerick School of Art and Design with a BA Honours Degree in fine art painting. Paul has exhibited extensively in Ireland, America and Europe. Paul’s work focuses predominantly on warfare and conflict - he believes that events of the past have a great influence on our understanding of society and civilization now. In his work he deals with the past and present traumas of history and tries to engage the viewers in the process of deconstruction of generally accepted opinions. Paul has travelled and researched extensively on the subject matter of war and conflict, from battlefields in Europe and North America, Auschwitz in Poland to the Kwai River in Thailand