Paul Feiler ANGLO / GERMAN, 1918-2013

Paul Feiler was a German-born artist who was a prominent member of the St Ives School of art: he has pictures hanging in major art galleries across the world. Born in 1918 in Dusseldorf, Feiler moved to Britain in the late 1930s, where he developed a distinctive approach to abstraction shaped by European modernism and his sustained engagement with the Cornish landscape. His paintings are characterised by restrained compositions, geometric forms and a sensitivity to the material qualities of paint.

Rather than treating abstraction as a purely intellectual exercise, Feiler approached it as a means of investigating atmosphere, perception, and the relationship between the visible and the imagined. Fieler's work is defined by the architectural quality the artist affords the work. He arranges blocks and intersecting shapes within his compositions suggesting structures without directly representing buildings or landscapes. His use of muted tones, deep shadows and subtle tonal variations create depth, while the repetition of forms introduces a measured rhythm to his portfolio.

A significant aspect of Feiler's practice was his connection with Cornwall, where he lived and worked for much of his life The regions coastline, historic buildings and distinctive light informed his understanding of space and material, although his paintings remained resolutely abstract.