Robert V. Reid
Born in the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago and raised in its rich cultural milieu, light, color, and movement are deeply embedded in Robert V. Reid’s collective unconscious. With graphite, charcoal, watercolor and oils, Reid uses these elements to create emotive rendering of the human form.
Reid’s creative journey began in Trinidad where he was introduced to several significant Caribbean artists who mentored him and nurtured his natural, untrained talent. Over an 18-20-year career, Reid’s work has changed to mirror his journey from the Caribbean to New York City. He arrived in New York, as a trained architectural draftsman, with a passion for painting and an urge to record, invent and manipulate the human image using raw talent. His immersion into the New York art scene led him to study at the School of Visual Arts and the Arts Students League, where he developed new techniques and sharpened his technical skills.
Reid has since created a body of work that reveals an impressive range of skills- works ranging from detailed- styled figurative realism rendered in oils, to stunning watercolors that blur the line between figurative and abstract paintings, to drawings in charcoal and pencil that demonstrate sound draftsmanship.

Reid’s figure paintings are characterized by the absence of a background, his focus is not on the space that the figures inhabit, but on the figures themselves; thereby empowering the viewer to imagine a space of their choice and to create their own answers as to why the figures are there.

The female figure has been one of the important subjects of painting and has been reinterpreted by painters in various styles throughout history; Reid joins this legion of painters with his favorite subject being the female form, painted from live models.
Mr. Reid has exhibited throughout America and Europe. His works have been displayed in private and public institutions, including The Studio Museum, Harlem, The Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, The Schoenberg Center Museum, New York. His works are also widely collected. He received a scholarship from the Art Student League. The winner of the first Annual Watercolors and Drawings, Valentine, NY as well as a recipient of the Jean Gates Artist Award. Mr. Reid has also exhibited alongside such notable artists as Dean Mitchell, Kadir Nelson, Larry Walker and Kehind Wiley.

EDUCATION
2015 - 2020 Art Students League, New York, NY
2008 - 2011 Art Students League, New York, NY
1990 – 1994 Art Students League, New York, NY
Distinguished Instructors Reid studied with at The League - Mary Beth McKenzie, Dan Gheno, Peter Cox and Janet A. Cook
1989 - 1990 School of Visual Arts
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2024 Resurgence MY Gallery NYC
2023 Clio Art Fair New York, NY
2020 Color and Line Art Exhibition Red Carpet Gallery Bklyn.
2018, 2019,2011 Harlem Fine Arts Show, Riverside Church, New York

2015 Red, Clover's Fine Art Gallery Brooklyn, NY.

2011 Harlem Fine Arts Show, Riverside Church, New York (added above)

2005 & 2008 Art Off the Main, Contemporary African, Caribbean and Latin American Art,

1997 Life Dance, New Century Artist Gallery, New York

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 Free Your Mind II El-Barrio Art Space PS109 NY, NY.
2023 Free Your Mind Jamaica Center for art and Learning, Queen
2023 Clio Art Fair New York, NY

2017 & 2018 Iggy pop " Life Class Exhibition " Royal Academy of Arts London

2016 Iggy Pop " Life Class Exhibition Brooklyn Museum New York

2015 To Be Real, Dorsey Art Gallery, Brooklyn NY

2013 Contemporary Art Fair, Jacob Javits Convention Center New York
2009 Dance on Canvas, Manhattan Borough President's Office, NY

2007 Caribbean American Heritage Exhibition Kings County Hospital Center D

2002 Black Romantic, The Studio Museum Harlem, New York

AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS

2008-2009 Financial Scholarship Awards – Art Students League of New York

2008 Jean Gates Award

2004 Valentine NY, 1st Annual Fine Art Awards – Winner in Watercolors & Drawings

2003 Art Review – New York Daily News

ARTIST’S STATEMENT

Artist statement
My subject is primarily human form. There is no greater joy than capturing the complex human element. With color, light and space, I seek to manifest the energy and emotions of my subjects, offering moments of beauty, serenity, and introspection. I am particularly inspired by the female figure-multi-dimensional, alluring, beautiful and strong.
My figures are not historical or political, simply human, speaking a universal language. They typically inhabit spaces void of background and sense of place, allowing the viewer to develop a personal emotional rapport, by putting the figure in the context of their choosing, and writing their own narrative.
My artwork reflects my love of mankind and the human form coming from my love of family.