In the mid 70's, David Reed (born 1946 in San Diego, lives and works in New York) translated the saturated expressive gesture of brushstroke into an artificial and highly controlled representation of “brushstroke”. While in Abstract Expressionism, the trace of the hand still indicated artistic introspection, Reed transformed it into an object of analysis and manipulation. This is related to his elaborate alkyd painting technique which creates unusual effects, giving the images an immaculate softness and elegance reminiscent of photography and mannerisms.
In the middle of painting, the artist also reflects on his visual experience with the moving images of television and cinema. With the foresight of an intellectual, Reed manages to question the parameters of painting again, beyond the boundaries of historical period and genre, with John Ford or Alfred Hitchcock playing an equally important role as Piero della Francesca or Peter Paul Rubens. Another New York artist referred to Reed's work as "Technicolor painting," a description welcomed by Reed, who quickly realized that "the more I think about the film, the better my pictures." Not only are Reed's elongated formats or photography the smoothness of his rings of color reminiscent of cinema, but also their lighting and cinematic dramaturgy.
The legendary American television series Miami Vice, launched by NBC in 1984, was a visual revelation, and Reed was not immune to her spell. Replace plot and characters with images, emotions and pure energy revolutionary television. Color and form have triumphed over content, which has often gone into the background. In 1984/85, Reed painted Vice, an image characterized by saturated shades of blue and yellow. For an exhibition at the Pérez Art Museum in Miami in 2016/2017, he created a new series of works; the four large format images will be shown for the first time in Europe, together with corresponding drawings, color studies and a video footage with a scene manipulated by the Miami Vice pilot.
The VICE AND REFLECTION #2 exhibition is curated by Thomas Heyden, Neues Museum
