Paul Couper GAvA

Aviation Art Prints and Original Paintings

Paul Couper GAvA is quickly cementing his reputation as one of Britain's best aviation artists and his aviation art prints and originals have proven to be some of our best sellers since he first joined us in 2014.

Aviation and aviation art have been a lifelong passion for Paul, and from an early age he was fascinated by the mysteries of flight. After a number of years as an Air Cadet and not having the academic qualifications to be an RAF pilot, Paul decided to combine his fascination with art and aviation into a career. Prompted by the illustrations in ‘Flight’ and ‘Aeroplane’, he studied technical illustration at Portsmouth College of Art, where the aviation theme naturally flowed.

Upon completion of his studies, his dream started to take shape and he was offered his first illustration job at ‘Flight International’. Here he learnt how aircraft are designed and constructed. With this knowledge and the guidance of some of the best illustrators in the world, Paul learnt how to draw and paint aircraft with the technical accuracy needed for such a subject.

After a number of years at ‘Flight’ and armed with the skills learnt there he pursued a freelance career working in many fields including aviation, while all the time honing his aviation art skills and improving them with every completed picture. A move into oils and acrylics gave him the flexibility to paint on a grander scale and with more realism.

In 2002, he was invited to join a like-minded group of artists in the ‘Solent Aviation Art Society’ and was prompted by the positive response at their exhibitions to also become a Friend of ‘The Guild of Aviation Artists’ in 2004. His next dream turned into reality in 2005 when he had two paintings accepted for the Guild's annual exhibition in London and was proud to be awarded the prestigious ‘Arthur Gibson Award’ for the best painting by a first time exhibitor for the painting ‘Chopburg’. In 2007 he was made an Associate of the Guild of Aviation Artists and was promoted to Full member in 2017.

Paul has exhibited regularly with the ‘Guild of Aviation Artists’ ever since and has won numerous prizes for his paintings, including the 2016 “E J Riding Memorial Prize”, the 2017 prize for best work in Acrylic and the “Roy Nockold’s Trophy” for best painting as voted for by the general public. This culminated in 2023 when he was awarded ‘Aviation painting of the year’ at the annual GAvA show for his painting "Tip and Run".

Paul is available for commissions and if you would like to own your personal piece of aviation history on canvas, please visit or commissions page.