Lynette Reed’s paintings are direct reflections of the life she has lived, her environment both past and present. Each of her vibrant pieces are snapshots in time and expressions of deep emotion, embodiments of her viewpoint, and a reaction to her intense fear of death. When Lynette paints, she infuses each work with an indescribable love of being alive.

For Lynette, creating a painting is a journey of discovery, an interplay between colour, light, and deep emotion. The paintings come through her, rather than of her. Each conception is different – the piece tells her how to begin. Sometimes she is moved to use colour, other times she needs more control and opts for sketch and line.

“Paintings, much like life, have many layers,” says Lynette. “There is the surface visual stimulation, but each is also composed of a deeper substance – joy, struggle, and the unseemly parts of ourselves that we are afraid to show the world. But it is the beauty and the chaos that shape our path, ultimately leading us to who we are. What we see on the surface is but a fragment of our glorious being.”

Lynette’s hope is that when you look at view her work you will feel the depth and discover something that triggers a long-forgotten memory. That something will hold you in the moment of looking, enabling you to be present in and to the beauty of this world.

Lynette began painting in March of 2020 when Italy went into lockdown. It was a terrifying time, and as she has always created, she knew the best way to keep the anxiety from taking control was to find something to do with her hands. What she didn’t realize was that painting would open an amazing world to her and become her obsession and path.

Lynette’s small town in Italy is visible in her work: the gorgeous, saturated colours, the peeling paint, cobblestone streets and hidden passageways, old frescos poking through slowly chipping concrete, the blue green colour of the river that runs past my window, the deep red brown of the historic bridge, the vegetation along the riverbanks, the hills that lead to the Alps and the the glorious Mediterranean light.

“In stark contrast I also see my past, New York City in the 1980’s where I spent a decade as a model. I see Zurich, Tokyo, Milan, traveling around the world to film television commercials and shoot ad campaigns. Life was fast and full of colour! Although my work is abstract, I see it and feel it all, the life and passion surrounds me and is always a part of me.”

Lynette attended the Parsons School of Design in New York City from 1986-1988. Her paintings have been exhibited in the U.S. and internationally, in Italy, the U.K. and Belgium. Her works are also collected in numerous public and private collections.