GO TO ARTIST'S GALLERY - RANDALL REID

RANDALL REID Sun Behind the Clouds, 2009 Mixed Media 6.5 x 5.5 x 2 inches

Randall Reid's experiences, from the earliest to the most recent, are integrated into every work of art he creates. He has been searching out and gathering bits and pieces of the natural and manmade environment for forty years, waiting for the exact composition that a particular object will bring to fruition. He refers to all his finished pieces as "earth symptoms" because he either incorporates natural weathering or distresses each fragment by hand, setting up a process by which wood or steel begins its journey back to nature. He refers to this process as "redirecting," a deceptively simple term that belies the painstaking craftsmanship that goes into it. He casts his materials into different forms by rearranging their elements and shifting their parts. Because each thing already has its own history, the juxtaposition creates a new entity altogether.

The first impression of a work of art registers indelibly upon the mind, but this does not necessarily indicate that the deeper meaning is concealed from view, to be discovered through additional investigation. On the contrary, the heart of the matter is almost always hidden in plain sight. Understanding it is another matter. The artist must furnish visual clues, however oblique, that tap into the universal consciousness. Randall Reid's work directs the eye into depths behind depths, inviting the viewer's spirit to step into the piece, to explore, to discover the intuitive perfection that is embedded in even the most opaque aspects of the world.

Reidcreates compellingly tactile surfaces that stir long-forgotten memories of walls that had become so familiar to us that they ceased to be noticed. Suddenly, their essence becomes visible again, paraphrased by these enigmatic works of art. Weathered and scarred, they conceal other dimensions; pierced by complex glimpses into the beyond, they hint at other lives and other times.

Working with steel, brass, and wood, Reid blurs the line between materials so that metal sometimes looks like wood, while wood takes on different characteristics altogether. His superb technique enables him to transform these ambiguities into evanescent façades that veil their content in the same way that a human face keeps its secrets. Having crafted these rich planes, Reid then presses through them to reveal windows within windows that promise refuge, solitude, and enlightenment. Each person experiences these apertures differently. Expectations are raised but not easily fulfilled, and therein lies the real message: it is the process and not the destination that is interesting; it is the desire to know that gives life to life.

By collaborating with nature rather than imposing an artificial structure on it, Reid creates an abstract meditation on the way objects fit into the world, and the way certain thoughts fit into the overall picture. The experience of viewing one of these works of art is closely akin to the observation of patterns in the larger environment or to a discussion of music or philosophy. Dreamlike and contemplative, the images pile up layer upon layer of meaning to create portals into other dimensions.

Suzanne Deats

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Randall Reid earned his BFA from Louisiana Tech and an MFA from Texas Tech. He is currently a Professor at Texas State University in San Marcos. Reid's works are included in numerous museum collections, including The Austin Museum of Art, Austin, TX, The Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, Arkansas, Longview Art Museum, Longview, Texas, Masur Museum, Monroe, Louisiana, Muscarelle Museum of Art, College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia, The Museum of Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, and The Hoyt Institute of Fine Arts, New Castle, Pennsylvania, as well as numerous private and corporate collections.

ABOUT THE GALLERY

Founded in 1974 by William and Pam Campbell, William Campbell Contemporary Art exhibits high-quality contemporary art in a variety of media, including paintings, works on paper, mixed-media constructions, photography, prints, ceramics, and sculpture. By exhibiting nationally recognized artists, along with new and emerging talent, the gallery aims to nurture an awareness and appreciation of the exciting diversity found in contemporary art.