Art Sync: Of Light and Discovery

EJ: You mentioned Édouard Vuillard last time, saying: "When I look at his paintings, I always get a sense of his subjects being embraced by their environments. The visual and sensual in harmony." I think of atmospheric effects and empty space as being the chief subject that your landscapes embrace. Do you think of patterns of buildings, fields and woods as ensconcing lit air and dramatic emptiness, as Vuillard used decorative patterns to surround and highlight his subjects?

JR: Yes. I have been painting in Ireland, specifically in residence at the Ballinglen Arts Foundation in County Mayo, for twenty-five years. I often paint at the same locations, which in many ways frees me to respond more to atmosphere and design elements in the landscape. It is also a subtle shift in intent. I always admired Vuillard for his ability to combine design and abstraction with the observed.

JR: Yes. It has long been a challenge for me to separate from the subject in front of me and focus on the painting. Sometimes one needs to focus on what a painting needs to be successful as a separate entity. Design and abstract relationships combined with the observed is the sweet spot that I am looking for.

EJ: I love your use of pastel yellow and blue to make clouds in Ballyglass Evening. Was this color contrast accurate to the scene? Or was it an invention to suggest the light effects that you observed?

JR: When I am outside working, I do look for what makes a particular light and atmosphere unique. I also might think of the previous days painting and light, as a way of pushing the differences of light, atmosphere and color.

EJ: Soft Rain is a delightful work, since you capture how fog holds color through highlighting a vibrant, pastel teal and pink barn amidst violet air. Lachen Fields does just the opposite: it creates space by contrasting distant lit fields with shadows of cast clouds in the foreground. If a foggy morning suddenly gives way to clear delineation between light and dark, do you reach for a new surface to start a study or another painting, and finish the fog painting outside tomorrow or in the studio?

JR: When working outside, especially in Ireland, the light and atmosphere are constantly changing, sometimes dramatically. (There are times when I have to wipe out and start over when the weather changes, but not often.) Rather than finding this frustrating, I find it liberating. Of course, decisions must be made, and I will try to lock into a moment. I had to learn that, as an artist, we are always making decisions. Along with his discovery I learned that every painting had to have an objective.

JR: Boats are interesting forms, and, for me, drawing is often about the exploration of a form. It is an act of getting to know a subject. I have done quite a few drawings and small paintings at Mystic Seaport. This painting was developed in the studio from these studies.

EJ: Kilcummin proposes a closer relationship with the farmers who live on the property. In our last interview you said, "I do wonder about the people in the buildings, their lives, and their relationship to the environment. Perhaps this question touches on an earlier question about the presence of people. I feel that people are always there, whether in the painting or outside as the painter or viewer." Since you often visit Ireland, do relationships with or knowledge of its residents influence you? By painting mostly from a distance outside, are you respecting privacy? Does neighborly curiosity have something to do with painting an interior like Mystic Boathouse?

JR: I always feel welcomed where I paint, and I always ask permission and let people know what I am up to. The conversations are always enriching, and they are two-way. A person’s connection to a specific place informs me and they are curious as to what I find appealing about their environment.

Jeffrey Reed: Of Time, Light and Change

March 28 - April 26, 2025

Jeffrey Reed received his BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art, studied at the Skowhegan School of Art, and received his MFA from the University of Pennsylvania. He has received numerous awards, including a Visual Arts Fellowship from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and has exhibited widely in the US and abroad.

Each summer since 2000 he has returned to the Western coast of Ireland to paint and teach at the Ballinglen Arts Foundation. Reed has been represented by Gross McCleaf Gallery for nearly 41 years, and has shown his paintings in Philadelphia, New York, throughout the East Coast, and in Ireland.

He currently lives in Pennsylvania.