PAUL RICHARD
art that drops into your day
“One of the essential roles of public art is to create a shared point of interest that strengthens the community’s identity and social engagement”
Paul Richard has carved out a singular place in New York City’s visual culture, turning sidewalks into canvases and everyday objects into works of wit. His drip portraits, drawn in continuous fluid lines, appear unannounced underfoot, while his faux “Designated Art” plaques reframe the urban landscape with humor and sharp commentary. These found pieces of art do more than decorate—they spark curiosity, prompting passersby to pause, question, and even discuss the unexpected discoveries with others. Together, they form a practice that is as minimal as it is impactful, reminding New Yorkers that art can thrive anywhere and invite shared moments of engagement.
Equally memorable is Richard himself—known to paint in a suit and bow tie, embodying a mix of elegance and irreverence. His works have been exhibited in galleries, collected by celebrities, and celebrated at institutions, yet they remain most powerful when encountered by chance on the streets that inspired them. By placing art in public spaces, Richard transforms routine walks into interactive experiences, encouraging people to document, photograph, and share what they’ve found, turning the city itself into a catalyst for social interaction and collective discovery. His art exists between fine art and street intervention, carrying with it both sophistication and spontaneity.
In his latest project, Richard brought his signature approach to the blank canvases across SEEN’s media portfolio in Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan, scaling his work citywide as part of SEEN’s commitment to making art more accessible and widely shared throughout the city we love. From street posters featuring his iconic David Bowie drip painting to a striking butterfly mural on a Canal Street billboard in Tribeca, each installation transformed familiar advertising surfaces into moments of public wonder. By embedding art directly into the urban landscape, the collaboration demonstrates how such interventions can spark curiosity, provoke conversation, and foster collective engagement—turning the everyday commute into an opportunity for discovery, reflection, and shared experience.
Unexpected Art, Unforgettable Moments.
Your drip portrait technique is instantly recognizable. Where did the idea originate, and what have you learned over the years from practicing your art on the streets of NYC?
My drip paintings are based on a drawing exercise known as a contour line drawing where the image is composed of a single contour line. The innovation with the drip painting is that the medium is poured from a cup rather than applied with a marker, brush, or pencil.
How did your collaboration with Seen Media Group come together for the Summer Art Series?
The collaboration with Seen Media Group came together for the Summer Art Series when Jay Heleva (the CEO and founder of SEEN) and I met to discuss a collaboration. We agreed that the high-profile outdoor SEEN media spaces and my art would be a great match. It’s terrific working with Jay and his great team. I’m having fun and learning a lot.
3. Your work often surprises people on their commute or walk home. What do you hope passersby feel when they stumble across your art in the wild?
When passersby discover my sidewalk art, my hope is that the work elicits curiosity. I like to believe some people will engage with the work for its unpredictability, or incongruity with its surroundings. I also hope they appreciate the technique and aesthetic. The high visibility of the SEEN Media Summer Art Series has generated a stunning amount of positive feedback for me.
You’ve done everything from sidewalk paintings to oil portraits and fake museum labels. Is there a thread that ties all of your work together, regardless of medium?
I do a range of work including painting, drawing, and drip art. I also do conceptual art—for example, Designated Art, where I put museum labels on outdoor objects and sites. These different formats are disparate in a way, but they all have a common thread: each is an exploration using a formal art language.
You have a very distinct visual language, especially with the drip portraits. Can you walk us through your process?
My process involves experimentation, trial and error, and a methodical ethic. It’s sort of an entrepreneurial approach.
There’s something both formal and playful about your style. How much of that is calculated, and how much just part of who you are?
There’s something both playful and formal about my work, but this juxtaposition is sometimes by accident. For example, the placement of some of the street art pieces might seem like a funny idea, but it just happens to be where I was running an errand.
Seen Media is built on the belief that visual storytelling has the power to transform everyday spaces. In a city as dense, diverse, and constantly in motion as New York, what do you see as the true role of public art, and why do you believe it’s essential?
One of the essential roles of public art is to create a shared point of interest that strengthens the community’s identity and social engagement.
For someone seeing your work for the first time through this Summer Art Series, what do you hope they take away from the experience?
One of my hopes with the Summer Art Series is that someone seeing it for the first time finds in it something edifying and maybe even inspirational. My hope also is that it expands my audience. The larger my audience becomes, the more I scrutinize my own work, and this is an important way in which I develop my art. As my audience expands, my art expands.
