Paul Edmund Herman - Ambar Core (Ámbar Núcleo)

Title: AMBER CORE (Series: Fractured Innocence) Technique: Oil on Canvas (Master Quality) Dimensions: 184 x 110 cm Year: 2025 Condition: New / Gallery Condition Provenance: Direct from the Artist's Studio (Andalusia, Spain) Certificate: Hand-signed Certificate of Authenticity (COA) included.

Seller Description
THE WORK "Amber Core" is a monumental, large-format work (184 cm height) from the Fractured Innocence series. It is an exploration of the "Uncanny"—that psychological space where the familiar becomes haunting. XL

The painting portrays a 19th-century bisque doll in a state of arrested decay. The work captures the violent contrast between the idealized porcelain surface (painted with traditional sfumato and glazing techniques) and the brutal reality of the underlying material. The defining feature—the deep amber emerging between the cracks and lost pieces—is a realistic depiction of the oxidized animal glue and sawdust composition found in Victorian doll-making, transforming the object into a metaphor for the fragility of memory.

THE COLLECTION The Fractured Innocence collection is a contemporary dialogue between Pop Surrealism and Old Master technique. It moves beyond the decorative to engage with the philosophy of the "Uncanny" (das Unheimliche).

While the subject matter—antique dolls—evokes nostalgia, the execution is strictly rigorous. The collection is defined by the tension between "Atmosphere" and "Matter." By blowing up these small, forgotten objects to a monumental scale, they cease to be toys and become psychological portraits, commanding the space they inhabit.

THE AUTHOR Dr. Paul Edmund Herman (b. Los Angeles) is a dual-national (US/UK) artist and scholar with over 50 years of professional experience. A second-generation painter, he holds a doctorate in Fine Arts from the University of Seville, where his 600-page doctoral dissertation focused on the material techniques of historical painting.

Dr. Herman’s work bridges the gap between the academic and the visceral. His paintings are held in private collections across the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Europe. Unlike commercial decorative art, his work is rooted in deep historical research and technical mastery, offering the collector not just an image, but a piece of intellectual property.

Large Format: Due to the monumental size (184 x 110 cm), this work is shipped rolled in a heavy-duty tube. This ensures 100% safety during transit and significantly lowers shipping costs for the buyer.

Format: The image is painted edge-to-edge. It can be mounted on a board to preserve the full width or stretched on standard bars.

"Amber Core" is one of a series of antique dolls painted in acrylics & oil paints with a mix of classical painting techniques (smooth gradients and glazes) contrasted with strong visible brushstrokes.

It is signed by the artist and includes a hand-signed Certificate of Authenticity (COA)

ARTIST'S NOTE: THE ORIGIN OF THE SERIES "I do not view these works as still lifes, but as displaced self-portraits. After five decades of life and art, I see these objects as avatars of lost innocence & bruised idealism. They represent the collision between the pristine innocence of the past and the inevitable hardening of experience. I paint the damage not to shock, but to document the survival of the spirit amidst the decay." — Dr. Paul Edmund Herman