There's an argument to be made that Paul Slater is the under-appreciated genius of British art. Paul's darkly eccentric work offers a mix of English seaside postcard whimsy, golden age American magazine advertising and European surrealism. It's an irresistible and unique combo. 

But on reflection, perhaps 'under-appreciated' is the wrong word. Why? Because Paul's work has been bought by Andrew Lloyd Weber, Damien Hirst, James Dyson and others. What's more, it's been seen by millions – on the covers of the Listener, The Week, The Times Magazine and on the walls of Tom Conran's Cow Saloon Bar & Dining Rooms and Heston Blumenthal's Melbourne Fat Duck restaurant.

During the 1990s Paul was one of the UK leading illustrators. He learned his craft via an unusual route, having been raised in the Lancashire town of Burnley with no knowledge of the formal art world. But blessed with natural talent and a desire to learn, Paul went on to study at the Royal College of Art. There, he was taught by towering figures of British illustration including Quentin Blake and Sheila Robinson.

Soon after he was blazing a trail himself. He provided original artwork for the restaurant reviews in The Times and the Daily Express. He also worked on book jackets, album sleeves and ads for brands such as Volkswagen, Saab, Anchor Butter and Shell. In 1996 Paul was made The Association of Illustrators ‘Illustrator of the Year’. 

But alongside his commercial work, Paul always painted for himself. His stylistic turning point came just after leaving college when he did a sketch of three men in an old plane. Though it had surreal and cartoon-like elements, Paul painted it entirely straight. He knew he was onto something, and so did the crowds that formed around the painting when he showed it at a group exhibition.

For the duration of his career in illustration, Paul would paint for 12 hours every day. Ideas poured out of him, helped by a technical facility that, he says, meant he could paint without looking. It was during this time that Paul fine-tuned a unique artistic vision populated by acrobatic cowboys, grim-faced couples in metal underwear, men wearing tiny trilbys and daleks in drawing rooms.

In the 2010s, Paul slowed down. He had some health issues and decided to scale back his illustration work. But he never stopped painting. This new show with the Catto is therefore his first in more than eight years. It comprises around 30 never-seen-before works.

Paul says: “For the last decade I have been painting non-stop. The ideas just keep on coming, even though I haven’t been exhibiting my work. The approach from the Catto came out of the blue, and I felt it was time to put my paintings back out there again. I'm very excited about it.”