He was a member of Artist Guild of Palm Beach Art Institute. He worked as mural painter, advertising illustrator and instructor. Riba did many exhibitions including the Cleveland Museum of Art (permanently represented); National Academy of Design; Carnegie Institute; Illinois State Museum (permanently represented); Ohio State Capitol (permanently represented); Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC; White House, Washington, DC; Cincinnati Art Galleries, Cincinnati, Ohio did a retrospective of his work in 2000. He also won many awards and honors including a Fellow of The Royal Society of Art in London.
Paul Riba was a painter of Magic Realism. He explored the unreal juxtaposition of objects with his own touch of exacting realism. He spoke of his work as "invitations to pause and enjoy."