My intention is to draw the viewer in with beauty to discover close up that there is an underlying strangeness, a narrative that speaks of a complex relationship with the natural world. The work presents spaces of nurture and security, exploring the domestic and the outdoor space, often depicting both in the same painting. There is an interest in the home as feminine space: that is, safe and seemingly reliable, but at the same time a place of restriction and interdependency. There is a delicate membrane between indoors and out, wildness and containment. Longings and unmet desires are buried deep underground, plants encroach and invade, oversized trees loom on the boundary. Animals and birds are skirting the edges of the narrative referencing folklore and myth calling the spirit outdoors, towards freedom and a deeper connection with collective consciousness 

I use oil paints on canvas or found objects, building a surface to break down with a painting often made up of many half revealed layers. Varnish and thinners are used to create controlled accidents of transparency and texture.

Pen Reid