Paul Rowntree (b.1937)
Work Titles & Dates: Late Summer, Red Flowers II, Purple Plus (each 2022); Facing the Sun (2020)
Materials & Dimensions: Oil on canvas—40" x 30", 32" x 48", 36" x 48", and 30" x 40"
Location at Summa Health: Juve Family Behavioral Health Pavilion, second-floor hallway
About the Art
Paul Rowntree’s oil paintings invite us to engage with nature in an intimate and unexpected way. Rather than offering a structured, traditional botanical study, he captures the natural world as it is: dynamic, untamed, and ever changing. His compositions evoke a sense of quiet discovery, as if we are peering through the foliage or stepping into a hidden corner of a garden, where flowers thrive without concern for human observation. By presenting blossoms partially obscured by leaves, tangled in stems, or caught in shifting light, Rowntree challenges us to look beyond the idealized image of flowers and embrace their true existence, one shaped by time and growth.
Purple Plus, 2022
His approach exists in the space between realism and abstraction. Instead of rendering each petal or leaf with rigid precision, Rowntree allows color, texture, and form to guide the viewer’s eye, creating a sense of movement and depth. In Purple Plus, the vibrant clematis blossoms seem to hover effortlessly, their luminous petals unfolding against a layered backdrop of blues, greens, and violets. The interplay of these cool tones creates a sense of depth and atmosphere, allowing the flowers to stand out as if they are momentarily suspended in light and air.
Rowntree’s handling of the surrounding foliage is intentionally restrained. While plentiful, the leaves are rendered with a softness that suggests movement, their edges blurring into the background. This subtle dissolution prevents them from overpowering the composition, instead serving to frame and accentuate the bold purple blooms. The contrast between the sharply defined petals and the more diffuse, almost dreamlike greenery reinforces the painting’s ethereal quality, as if the blossoms exist in a fleeting moment of perfect clarity before blending back into their surroundings.
Through his expert use of color and form, Rowntree creates a work that is both vibrant and contemplative. The clematis flowers, though central, are not static; they seem to pulse with energy, their rich hues deepening and shifting with the light. In this way, Purple Plus becomes more than a simple botanical study. It is an exploration of presence and perception, where beauty is both strikingly immediate and delicately transient.
Late Summer, 2022
In Late Summer, Rowntree masterfully conveys the quiet yet poignant transition between the height of summer and the slow approach of autumn. The once lush petals, now tinged with the first signs of decay, curl inward as their vibrant hues soften and fade into the muted tones of the surrounding foliage. This delicate transformation, rather than evoking a sense of loss, is presented as an inevitable and even poetic passage of time, an ode to nature’s rhythms.
Rowntree’s attention to detail draws us into these subtle shifts, where the crisp edges of wilting petals contrast against the lingering vitality of the leaves and stems. The interplay of light and shadow accentuates the changing textures, from the velvety softness of petals to the increasingly fragile, skeletal forms of the pistils that remain. Positioned near the edge of the canvas, these remnants serve as a quiet but powerful symbol of continuity: what fades will eventually give way to new growth.
Through this work, Rowntree invites the viewer to contemplate the beauty in impermanence. The painting does not dwell on the end of summer as an abrupt conclusion but rather as a moment within an ongoing cycle. In doing so, Late Summer becomes a meditation on transformation, resilience, and the graceful acceptance of change in both nature and life.
Facing the Sun, 2020
In Facing the Sun, light becomes the central force, not merely illuminating but seemingly energizing a golden blossom that radiates warmth and vitality. The interplay between brightness and shadow adds a dynamic quality to the composition, where the petals appear to shimmer with an almost ethereal glow. This stark contrast between sunlit vibrancy and the surrounding darkness accentuates the transient beauty of the moment, capturing the delicate balance between illumination and obscurity.
Rowntree’s mastery of color and contrast deepens the emotional resonance of the piece, immersing the viewer in a scene that feels both intimate and universal. The careful modulation of light suggests movement, as if the flower is in a constant dialogue with the shifting sun. Through this interaction, the painting becomes more than a study of nature. It is a meditation on time, seasonality, and the fleeting yet profound connections between living things and their environment. By inviting contemplation of these natural rhythms, Rowntree encourages us to reflect on the impermanence of beauty and the way light shapes our perception of the world.
Red Flowers II, 2022
In this composition, the red blossoms pulse with energy, their warm hues heightened against a backdrop of cool greens and deeper tones. Rather than isolating each petal in meticulous detail, Rowntree allows the interplay of light and brushwork to suggest the flowers’ delicate structure. Some blooms appear to be in full radiance, while others recede into shadow or are partially obscured by the tangle of stems and leaves. This subtle push and pull between visibility and concealment mirrors the way flowers exist in the wild, flourishing without regard for symmetry or perfection, their beauty revealed in fleeting glimpses.
Red Flowers II is a vibrant exploration of color, form, and movement within nature. Paul Rowntree’s approach is not one of strict botanical accuracy but rather an invitation to experience flowers as they exist in their natural environment: partially hidden, intertwined with surrounding foliage, and responding to light and shadow in a dynamic, ever-changing way.
Rowntree’s mastery of oil paint allows for a richness of color that enhances the emotional quality of the piece. The intensity of the reds, offset by softer areas of shadow and negative space, conveys both vitality and transience. The composition encourages the viewer to slow down and take in the intricate layers of color and form, much like pausing to appreciate a flower in the shifting light of day.
About the Artist
Rowntree’s artistic journey is deeply informed by his background. A graduate of St. Martin’s School of Art in London, he spent more than 30 years as a graphic designer and illustrator before transitioning to painting full-time. This foundation in design is evident in his compositions, where he balances organic spontaneity with careful visual structure. Now dividing his time between Texas, New York’s Hudson Valley, and Worthington, Ohio, he is continually drawn to landscapes that are often overlooked, places where wild grasses, reeds, and native plants thrive in intricate, ever-shifting patterns. Through his work, he not only captures the beauty of these spaces but also encourages us to slow down, observe, and appreciate the quiet complexity of the natural world.
A graduate of St. Martin’s School of Art in London, Rowntree spent more than 30 years as a graphic designer and illustrator before turning his full attention to painting. Now dividing his time between Texas, New York’s Hudson Valley, and Worthington, Ohio, where he lives with his wife and their cat, he finds inspiration in overlooked landscapes: fields of native grasses, tangled reeds, and wildflowers that offer endless patterns and textures to explore.
Where to Find More of His Work
Rowntree’s work can be found on his website and Instagram. Summa Health also holds an earlier series of his paintings featuring reeds and grasses, located in the Akron Emergency Department, in the hallway to the right of ER Registration. His paintings have been exhibited in Martha’s Vineyard, Dallas, Houston, Midland (TX), New York, Connecticut, and German Village (Columbus). His work is part of private collections in London (U.K.), Dallas, New York, Rhode Island, and throughout Ohio.