Paul Braid

Paul Braid was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1920 and studied at the Ontario College of Art, graduating in 1947. Upon graduation, he painted extensively throughout northern Ontario, Quebec and the New England states, moving west in 1953 to continue his full-time career as an artist and as an art educator, working for many years as an instructor for the University of Alberta Faculty of Extension.

At the Ontario College of Art, one of Paul Braid's instructors was Franklin Carmichael, an original member of the Group of Seven, and evidence of the Group's influence can be seen in Braid's paintings. This is particularly apparent in his smaller oil sketches, which express a freshness and immediacy so characteristic of much of the Group's smaller plein air oil sketches.

Paul Braid's work has been exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions, including shows in Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Lethbridge, Camrose, Wainwright, Winnipeg, Niagra-on-the-Lake, Toronto, Ottawa and St. Louis, Missouri. In addition to these, his art has been included in touring shows in Alberta and in Kobi, Kyoto, and Tokyo, Japan. He is represented in public and private collections in Wales, Holland, Denmark, People's Republic of China and in many Canadian and American cities.