ARTIST'S STATEMENT:
I want my artwork to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. I want it to shed light and call attention to beauty, coherence, and unity; and, I want it to cast doubt on falsehoods, oversimplifications, and absurdities. I’d like to be instrumental in deepening our awareness and appreciation of the fullness of life, including its complexities, ambiguities, and paradoxes.
I draw and paint on an iPad with an Apple Pencil or my fingers using a variety of drawing/painting apps; although, I still work in wood and clay as well. iPads are portable and versatile, require little set up, and there’s no clean up. They’re the perfect medium for what I do. I can quickly convert ideas into illustrations and share them or time-lapse videos of them on social media. I can also prepare the images for printing on metal, paper, and canvas surfaces in a variety of sizes.
BIOGRAPHY:
Paul Longo has lived a relatively unconventional life. In his youth, he plowed through dyslexia (before teachers had ever heard of it) and learned that there is, indeed, more than meets the eye. In college, he read Don Quijote in Spanish for the first time and discovered an interest in anthropology. He went on to complete 3 graduate degrees and has lived and worked in 7 countries and 9 states since then. Paul has taught anthropology, education, Spanish, research and evaluation methods, and ESL at 6 different universities. These days he teaches digital art to adults with developmental disabilities and non-credit ESL to adults at a local community college.
Paul was also a Benedictine monk and lived in a monastery for nearly 8 years, until he met and married his wife. Together they were survivors of Hurricane Katrina as residents of New Orleans. But it was not until 2013, while living in a downtown loft in Des Moines, Iowa, that Paul complained to his wife, a CIO in higher education, about not having either a basement or a garage in which to make art. A few days later she gave Paul her old iPad with an installed drawing app and said, “here’s a studio for your lap.” Since then, not only have iPads become larger and more powerful, but the number of drawing and painting apps has increased and each one offers a unique set of features to create original artwork. Nowadays, Paul takes his "studio” everywhere he goes.
Throughout his eclectic journey, Paul has created and shared his art to make sense of the world, to give voice to new identities and experiences, and to engage more intentionally with others. To view more of Paul Longo’s works, digital and otherwise, visit his social media sites: www.portfoliolongo.com, twitter, YouTube, Instagram: @plongeaux, Facebook: Paul J. Longo
I grew up with that gem of an expression, to red up, most likely related to the word “ready.” It means to lightly clean i.e., to make ready. Yep, I’m reddin’ up by posting these four drawings done somewhere between California’s Central Valley and Kauai so I can move on for Pete’s sake.
Annyth and I were both enchanted by the conspicuous subject of this iPad painting in Procreate, a hybrid hibiscus at the National Tropical Botanical Garden in Kalaheo, Hawaii on Kaua’i. It was about 12 inches in diameter and had enough texture and color to elicit a deep silence.
They’re so colorful…and plentiful, a feral beach chicken on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.
A friend, who’s an authority on the subject, sheds light on the subject in this blog post. See more here.
October 15, 2016, Brightdart Print & Design, 528 W. Main St., Merced, CA
This time I dragged along an easel to hold my iPad and positioned myself out front on the sidewalk, which coaxed a few people into the shop, where I had paper, canvas, and metal prints for sale. As night fell, I drew this portion of Main St.. A colleague of mine at the Enrichment Center, Ashlee, was tabling right next door; so, I had a familiar subject in a familiar setting. Next time I’d like to add a larger monitor or even project the unfolding image onto a wall or screen.
portfoliolongo 
