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Patricia Poullain the grandmother of Frankie Poullain from the group ‘The Darkness’ is 85 but still has a passion for painting, travelling and going to see her grandson’s concerts.

Patricia has been painting for most of her life and now has her works in private collections in England, France, Ireland, Italy and the United States.

Patricia’s work uses bold geometric plains of colour to create stimulating illusions of depth and perspective. She describes her work by saying: “I am not trying to deceive the eye, perhaps to tease it a little.”

Patricia is a strong believer in the quote by Rodin, which says, “If art is to have life it cannot keep reproducing the past, it has to move on and explore new worlds.” I am sure this is especially significant to her due to the constant travelling and exploring she has done throughout her amazing life.

Patricia ordinary schooling ended during WWII. “Teachers gave up trying to teach me mathematics. Sums and figures mean nothing to me. I did shine in drawing and painting and I still have the six certificates from the Royal Drawing Society.”

Patricia was originally a drama student and graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She later started working in a theatre in Dundee, Scotland where she spent some time as an assistant to the well-known scenic artist, Kathleen Ankers. After finishing studying at RADA she understudied a big part at the Comedy Theatre in London and played in various other theatres. Her American uncle came to visit her and invited her to the US Patricia crossed the Atlantic in 1952 and was very impressed by New York.

Whilst acting as a guide at the UN in New York Patricia met and married a French United Nations official. She was living in Greenwich Village, and it was also around this time in New York that her son, Pierre was born.

Son, Pierre was born in NYC but not in Greenwich Village.

Her husband was later posted to Korea where they both moved. This is where Patricia was introduced to the world of abstract painting as she started studying art with Korean painter, Lee Se Duk, who later went on to become the curator of the Sonje Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul. After Korea Patricia moved back to New York, where she attended courses at the Art Student’s League and participated in a number of group shows such as: Art Directions 1959; Galerie Felix Vercel “Women Painters of France”, 1960; [Vercel’s gallery on Madison Avenue represented Fautrier and Vieira da Silva at that time] Explorer Gallery, 1961 and in 1963 her work was accepted by a jury including Larry Rivers and Ad Reinhardt for the 21st Annual Oil Competition at the Village Art Center in Greenwich Village. In 1964 La Maison Francaise of New York University gave her a one-woman show. She also participated in the Annual UN Art Exhibition for the benefit of UNICEF which, was held in the lobby of the UN building in New York every year from 1962 to 1967. In 1965 the Museum of Modern Art held the exhibition known as “The Responsive Eye” with Frank Stella, Bridget Riley and others. “Op Art” made a big impression on Patricia Poullain and influenced her work. This was a very significant time in art history for New York with great abstractionists such as Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning and Robert Motherwell all making their mark. Returning with her husband to live in France she exhibited works in group shows in Cagnes-sur-Mer and Tourettes-sur-Loup in the 70’s. Now living in Normandy she was included in the 12th Rencontre des Arts Plastiques in Nogent-le–Rotrou in 2003. In 2006 and 2007 her works were shown in Dublin at Oisin Gallery’s summer exhibitions and she had solo exhibition at the gallery, “Les Notes Bleues.” 2007 as well as participating in the 15th Rencontre des Arts Plastiques in Nogent- le- Rotrou  The Dublin gallery, Hillsboro Fine Art, in company of Ben Shahn, Robert Motherwell and other well known artists. She also exhibited in the Stone Gallery in Dublin in 2008. In November 2010 the village of Bretoncelles (Orne) gave her a solo exhibition. In London 2011 she participated in the Watercolour and Works on Paper fair with Sandra Higgins. Patricia has been exploring geometric abstract painting for over forty years and has created and developed a very individualized style of painting and even says:

“It is important to keep to a personal style, as personal as one’s handwriting.”

Each painting can have a different effect on the eye with colours and shapes being used to pull and manipulate form.