Oliver David Reed, b. Beverley, East Yorkshire, England 1970.
“The world is not simply available; it is achieved rather than given” Alva Noë, ‘Varieties of Presence’ 2012
‘The world reveals itself to those who travel on foot.’ Werner Herzog, 'Every Man for Himself and God against All: A Memoir' 2024
My work relates to the natural environment, focusing on space, time, memory and ecology, moving from one point of focus to another, with each body of work shifting its focus and employing various processes and approaches.
Explored from a phenomenological perspective, employing our various senses, of moving within time and through aspace is central to informing my understanding. These personal experiences are then built upon, employing other means of recording, such as drawing, photography and more recently, the use of Lidar and sound recordings.
Returning to the studio, it is the combination of the experience, memories and recordings which helps to act as a visualization aid a trigger for the memory, and perceptions whilst recorded materials can build on the perceived knowledge. It is arguably this binary relationship between the embodied experience of ‘being in’ the landscape and being 'in the studio' that is central to my enquiry.
In my most recent series, 'Ecotone', a word used in ecology to describe the transitional space between two biological communities, where two communities meet and integrate. Acts as a linking word between the ‘on-site’ experience and the studio, between the digitally generated and traditional drawing approaches.
Employment
Head of Arts, Centre for Open Learning, University of Edinburgh.
Studied
UAL: Postgraduate Certificate in H.E. - Learning & Teaching (2007)
Master’s of Fine Arts Degree at Edinburgh College of Art (1999)
Fine Art (Hon's) Degree at Hull College of Art (1993)
Foundation Diploma at Leeds College of Art (1989)
Solo Exhibitions
11/17-2/18 'Varieties of Presence', Tweeddale Gallery, Peebles, Scotland.
5/08-6/08 Superficial Intrusions, Hull College of Art & Design, England.
Group Exhibitions
5/5/25-28/9/25 Scottish Landscape Awards 2025. Kirkcudbright Galleries, Scotland.
12/20-1/21 'Flow' Visual Arts Scotland Members Winter Show.
11/20-12/20 'Landscape & Memory' Koel Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan (reviewed).
1/2019 ‘Alight’ - Visual Arts Scotland Exhibition, RSA, Edinburgh.
12/2016 ‘Fly’ - Visual Arts Scotland Exhibition, RSA, Edinburgh.
2/2015 ‘Converge’ - Visual Arts Scotland Exhibition, RSA, Edinburgh.
9/14-10/14 ‘Fabric of the Land’, The SMART Gallery, Aberdeen, Scotland.
7/14-10/14 ‘Beyond Land’, BP Atrium Gallery, Aberdeen, Scotland.
6/12-8/12 Flat Cat Gallery, Lauder, Scottish Borders, Scotland.
5/12-6/12 Duns Castle, Scottish Borders, Scotland.
2009 Environmental Sculpture, iPark, East Haddam Connecticut, USA.
12/08 ‘Open Studios’, iPark, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA.
5/08-5/08 ‘Art for Rosie’ Open Eye Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland.
4/00-5/00 Wasps, (Stockbridge Gallery), Edinburgh.
1992 Student Art Show, Maastricht, Netherlands.
AIR (artist in residence)
2013 ‘Outlandia’, Glen Nevis, Scotland. (unfinished).
2008 iPark, East Haddam, Connecticut, USA
1998 Cleveland Institute of Art, Ohio, USA.
Site-Specific Works
1999 'Focal Stone', Edinburgh International Conference Centre, Scotland.
Films, Articles and Lecture
2018 'Varieties of Presence' Open Lecture, University of Edinburgh
2014 Documentary film by Sana Bilgrami for 'Art in Healthcare' ‘Artist Uncovered’.
2014 ‘Artist Uncovered’ - An article by Martine Foltier Pugh, ‘Art in Healthcare’.
Professional Body / International Teaching
Short Course, Estonian Academy of Arts (April, 2025)
Visual Arts Scotland - Council Member (2015-2017)