Paul Town is a Bradford-born artist who specialises in painting sport and sport stadium scenes. He has built a successful business with sales of his paintings and prints, and for commissioned work. These have included commissions from football, rugby and other sporting clubs, as well as from sports related companies, and individual sport players, officials, and club supporters. In recent years his artwork has extended to include landscapes, scenes from wartime, and other nostalgia related artwork. Paul’s work can now be found in private and organisational collections across the UK and overseas.
World Cup Final, 1966
Born in 1969 to parents, Barry and Maggie, Paul was educated in his home district of Eccleshill, Bradford, and on leaving school his first career was in the construction industry. After serving an apprenticeship, Paul established his own construction business, managing complex building projects from concept to final installation stage. He studied construction management to an advanced level at Bradford College and later became a tutor in brickwork and construction management at the College.
He had, however, always been interested in art and his construction studies and work had given him a formal opportunity to study architecture. He was also a keen football supporter and was drawn to the strong affiliation and commitment that sports supporters had for their local sport stadiums.
Bradford City, Valley Parade
In interviews with the art critic and writer, Andrew Liddle, Paul recalled how as a child he had explored the Park Avenue ground in Bradford. By this time the 19th century built grounds had fallen into disrepair and Paul had felt a sense of real loss to his community, and particularly when the stands were finally demolished in 1980. Paul was also in the crowd at Bradford City’s Valley Parade, in 1985, when a fire destroyed the stadium and killed 56 people and injuring or traumatising many others. The scenes witnessed on that date and remained with him and impacted on his later work as an artist.
By 2012 he was ready to move from building into a new career as a football artist. This was reinforced when he made his first sale in 2013 of the former Vetch football stadium at Swansea, sold to a Swansea City FC supporter when Bradford City played Swansea in the League Cup Final at Wembley.
He steadily began to make sales and receive commissions for sporting scenes and particularly stadiums, both old and new, including nostalgia images of the old Bradford Park Avenue stadium. In recent years the Park Avenue grounds have had a multi-million pound refurbishment, with several new pitches and nets installed. But the old stadium retains an important part of his family history and memory – the place his grandfather attended as a supporter, and where his father, Barry, scored a goal in a trial match.
Bradford Park Avenue v Czechoslovakia, 1961
Commissions have included those from his hometown club, Bradford City, of their Valley Parade stadium, both old and new, as well as for other clubs nationwide, including Exeter City, Heart of Midlothian, Dunfermline Athletic, Raith Rovers and Queens Park Football clubs. He has also had his artwork placed within the time capsule buried underneath the new stand at St James Park, Exeter.
Newcastle St James Park under lights
In 2019 Paul was commissioned by Queens Park Football Club to illustrate the historic Hampden Park trio of grounds, which was exhibited at the Scottish National stadium in December of that year.
Paul has also received commissions to paint portraits of sporting personalities and officials, including the former Great Britain Rugby League player and Coach, Brian Noble, David Cook of Dunfermline Athletic, as well as Ryan Sparks, the CEO of Bradford Football Club.
Individual sport supporters, or their families, have also asked Paul to create paintings of stadiums that have formed an important part of those supporters’ lives.
His artwork now extends beyond stadium art to include landscapes and war themed artwork, as well as illustrations of iconic sporting equipment and supporter regalia and collector’s items e.g. football boots, scarves, strips, and badges.
Hull FC, The Boulevard Stadium.
In 2024 a book, The Man Who Paints Football, by Paul Town, was published by Heritage Unlocked and describes and illustrates over 100 examples of his art inspired by football grounds, past and present. The book features a foreword by sports commentator John Helm and covers stadiums across Britain, including many in North East England and Yorkshire. Contemporary northern stadiums, such as Hillsborough, Newcastle United, Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Darlington, and Shildon are featured, alongside international sporting venues, such as Hampden Park and Wembley. Iconic past stadiums, such as Ayresome Park, Middlesborough, the Darlington’s Feetham grounds, and at Roker Park, Sunderland, are also depicted, as remembered in their heyday by supporters. The book is available through the artist’s website, shown below.
Artist Contact: Paul Town Art
See also Dr. Andrew Liddle: Paul Town: The Man Who Paints Football, December 2024 at Yorkshire Times
Images shown here by courtesy of Paul Town. They must not be copied without the permission of the artist; see his website above for contact purposes.
Liddle, A. (2024)