Paul Sattler’s recent oil paintings and drawings are a tour de force. Multiple characters are captured in moments taken from obscure narratives and unfolding dramas. Drawing upon color theory and surrealism for inspiration, mythology and historical references also inspire Paul Sattler's paintings and drawings. In the robust world Sattler creates, animals and people interact, dance, and perform circus tricks across urban street scenes and backyard backdrops.
"The functions of my animals are many – beasts of burden, victims of ridicule, fantastical visions, mythical beings, and stand-ins for human emotions, predicaments, and phobias. While striving to avoid the moralizing lessons of traditional fables, many of the narratives are personalized imagery inspired by a variety of literary sources including Grimm Brothers tales, E. T. A. Hoffmann and the vast legacy of children's literature. But primary roots of inspiration reveal themselves when I am not looking for them – such as when I feel a charge coming from the presence of an animal in works of adult literature such as Hermann Hesse, Nelson Algren, James Joyce, Balzac, Poe, among others."
