October Featured Artist
Ashby Dawson Reed, Jr
I paint for the enjoyment and passion of filling a blank canvas with something I feel works at that moment in time, on that space. I strive to analyze what I see in my minds’ eye and then translate it onto that blank space with the medium with my medium of choice (pastel, pallet knife with acrylic or oil). Even the beginning sketch could be the completed piece --- if that’s where I decide to stop. That old saying, “knowing when to quit” will often come into play at any time while I’m working on something. My painting process initially involves sketching my composition and coloring the work with my personal reaction to the image I’m interpreting. It gets laid down first as a sketch and then with a pallet knife. I might even color with pastel first to plan the color scheme before proceeding to Acrylics or Oil. Many of my paintings are inspired by my connection to the inner-city experiences I’ve had as a youth growing up in the south Bronx. Urban Kites is a piece that does exactly that, hanging out with my friends up on the roof flying homemade kites against the New York city skyline. Doing battling with other neighborhood flyers all day and using tails with razor blades to cut each other down. I don’t think art is a discipline one masters, I believe even the Masters continue to be students of the process. So as a successful Commercial Artist all my life, the Fine Arts have been a blessing and a fresh start at a passion I can now enjoy in my retirement. This was due to the fact that in my everyday 8 to 5 job, it was required I be creative every single day in the advertising arena. In the end, it’s all about “hitting that mark” for a patron to have a good reason to ultimately purchase a finished piece for the work to be a marketable commodity. How an artist sees and interprets what they create is pretty much the bottom line. I truly enjoy my time now expressing an age old passion of mine that’s come full circle after 40 years as a Graphic Designer. Since 2009 I have been involved with ONYX Fine Arts Collective as an exhibiting artist, marketing consultant, web designer and a Board member. Contact info: reedash48@comcast.net, 253-632-8368, www.ashbydawsonreed.com. For more information please contact Onyx at: 206-905-4617. 
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