Reba Kittredge Tyson
Reba Kittredge Tyson is an artist who lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
Lives should be documented, remembered. The monumental moments break down into minuscule scenes. I find the most interesting moments to be the absurd. What I find absurd is always evolving. Maybe it’s that moment that was so bad, all you could do is laugh. Or a moment in a sunset that felt too beautiful to be real. I want these moments to stay vivid, but the nature of memory means that with each passing day they get more hazy. Sometimes all I have is a distant recollection and I need to reconstruct the scene. Sometimes I have someone else’s memory, or the marks a moment left behind. I solidify and collect the memories in my paintings.
Suzy Royal
Curator
“Reba Kittredge Tyson's paintings are intimate, shocking almost, in their close proximity and subject matter of bruised, scarred and injured bodies. With only isolated body-parts visible, a thigh, inner arm, rounded buttocks, the work takes on a voyeuristic quality. We know nothing of the sitters, however, due to the nearness and privacy of the moment we are privy to, leads one to believe these are portraits of lovers or the closest of friends. In 'Kellie, Bed-Stuy', 2019, a woman's buttock is portrayed with tender softness. A large bruise has already begun to heal, turning from purple to greenish-yellow. The softness of the colors, combined with the close-up detail creates a Turneresque abstraction, which is at once beautiful and melancholic. These intimate moments create a kind of travel log as many of the titles include the subject's first name and the location of the sitter; Maya, Brooklyn Heights; Corinna, Costa Rica.”
ArtConnect asked the winning artists to share with us a glimpse into their creative life to get a sense of their personal inspiration and artistic process.
What are some of the central themes you pursue in your work?
The themes I am most conscious of are memory, survival and strength, color, and beauty.
How has your art practice developed over time?
I have been making art my whole life. I was fortunate enough to have artistic parents who supported my endeavors, as well as an older sister who is an artist and could show me the path.
Reba in process
What drew you to work with your medium/media of choice?
When I was in art school I floundered trying to find the best means of expressing what I needed to express, but I didn't quite land on anything. After graduating, I worked for the painter Robby Rose who taught me about having a consistent studio practice. I found a lot of inspiration in that.
Describe a typical day in the studio/wherever you make your work.
I am not a morning person. I get to the studio around noon with a coffee and hope there is a new True Crime podcast I can listen to while I work. I stay until 8 or 9 most days.
Studio image Reba Kittredge Tyson
What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced as an artist?
I used to struggle a lot with what to paint, and how to make my paintings work together. I just had to push those concerns and keep making paintings I cared about. Now I struggle with running out of studio space.
What are you currently working on? / What’s coming up next for you?
I have two paintings I am getting close to finishing. I keep a list of what I'd like to paint next, so I'll pick something from that.
Lina Stallmann
Curator
“When looking at Reba Kittredge Tyson’s works, I found myself very much confronted with my own fragility - thinking about my own bruises and scars. Her perspectives are very intimate, very POV, as if you are looking at your own body or other people’s bodies. As a viewer, I don’t know where the bruises come from. This gives me the freedom to find my own stories within the works. Some of the works are very abstract (e.g. Isabella, Los Angeles 2016) so that you forget about the actual subject matter - until you refocus - seeing the body again. It is wonderful how Reba made my mind travel in many directions.”
See more of Reba Kittredge Tyson’s work
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