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Hi! I'm BF Reed. Originally from Philadelphia, PA, I now enjoy my time painting on the coast of North Carolina. I had the wonderful privilege during my time in Philadelphia to take part in many of the philanthropic opportunities offered to the talented young, which put me firmly on my life’s path as an artist.
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Award-winning artist BF Reed had the good fortune to receive a scholarship the respected Moore College of Art. She later transferred and completed her formal studies at the prestigious Tyler School of Art, earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree. Both schools had rigorous and demanding programs but with different focuses. This divergence in educational view point enhanced and completed her overall background. This education launched her professional career as Medical Illustrator at Temple University’s Medical School. There, she created exquisitely detailed images of animal and human biological and surgical illustrations and procedures. As a “visual translator”, she converted complex scientific information into a visual form to address the needs of an array of health science professionals.
Later, armed with a degree in Illustration and Graphic Design, she tapped into her well-honed artistic talent to work as a graphic artist/illustrator. With her creative flair, she visualized and designed captivating images, by hand and later with software, for marketing logos, posters, brochures and magazines for an assortment of major entertainment events. Throughout it all, she painted. She traveled extensively and visually recorded her destinations in many paintings and drawings. Expanding upon her original formal education, she developed a deeper appreciation and understanding of image making and the study of light. Light captivates BF Reed and she often looks for a way to show how light defines the form. This formal education and occupation developed an affinity for detail that enjoyably still shows in her realistic art work today. Her work is sometimes referred to as hyper real though Bf Reed does not agree with this assignment of terms to her work. She notes that it is, “just realistic.” Perhaps as a respite from this realism, BF Reed also creates large abstracts that have no bases in reality. Just strong design. She notes that this is where her mind goes to rest. It rests in a world of just shapes and forms and colors.
Her masterful paintings reflect the tireless years that she has devoted to creating and developing her craft. Her extensive portfolio of paintings reveals the full range of her current expertise because she admits to enjoying more creative learning and growth. BF Reed is known for skillfully captures the immense power of the raging ocean crashing ashore or the graceful dance of multi-colored butterfly Koi, while her stunning abstracts scream for attention.
Along the way she worked as an educator, she shared her vast artistic experience with a generation of students. Exposing them to the splendor of art, art history and inspiring them to unlock their imaginations. She helped develop in them both the love and discipline of art and imagine making that many of them carried on to their adult lives. She has always been an artist. Even as a preschooler, she could often be found with pencil in hand – doing what she loved – creating.
BF Reed's work has been accepted into many national and international competitive exhibitions and has won awards in those arenas. Her exquisite water color and pastel paintings and acrylic abstracts have been exhibited in numerous galleries across the US and internationally. Her paintings are held in various private, diplomatic and corporate collections in the US and abroad. You can find her work at New Elements Gallery in Wilmington, NC, Centerpiece Gallery in Raleigh, NC, as well as Mattie King Davis Gallery in Historic Beaufort, NC. BF Reed has earned signature membership status with the International Association of Pastel Societies, American Women Artists, Degas Pastel Society and the Pastel Society of North Carolina.
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PSA, IAPS/MC, AWA, PSWC
Biography
Select Awards and Shows
Onslow Art Council Solo Show - Feb 2015
Bank of the Arts Solo Show - May 2015
Onslow Art Council Four-Artist Show - June 2015
Art Exposure Invitational Juried Show, Best of Show - Aug 2015
Accepted to Baxter’s Fine Art Gallery - Jan 2016
Ambleside Gallery Juried Show - Feb 2016
Onslow Art Society Spring Show - March 2016
Women Painters of the Southeast Juried Show - April 2016
Wilmington Art Association Members Juried Exhibition, Gail Henderson Award - Apr 2016
North Carolina Statewide Pastel Exhibition - May 2016
Ambleside Gallery Juried Show - Feb 2017
Wilmington Art Association Members Juried Exhibition, Product Award - Apr 2017
North Carolina Statewide Pastel Juried Exhibition - May 2017
New Elements Gallery Solo Show - Aug 2017
North Carolina Pastel Society Online Juried Exhibition, “Pure Color 2017” - Aug 2017
311 Gallery Juried Floral Show, Award - Sep 2017
Women Painters of the Southeast Online Juried Exhibition - Sep 2017
Maryland Pastel Society Shades of Pastel Juried Show - Oct 2017
Bank of the Arts Juried Show - Nov 2017
Wilmington Art Association Members Juried Exhibition - Apr 2018
North Carolina Statewide Pastel Exhibition - May 2018
Wilmington Art Association Members Juried Exhibition, Merit Award - Apr 2019
North Carolina Pastel Society "Pure Color" Online Juried Exhibition - Aug 2019
Ambleside Gallery Juried Show - Aug 2019
American Women Artists Online Juried Show - Mar 2020
Wilmington Art Association Members Juried Exhibition - Apr 2020
New Elements Gallery Solo Show - Jun 2020
Great Lakes Pastel Society Online Juried Show - Jul 2020
Pastel Society of Southern California Online Juried Show, Award - Jul 2020
North Carolina Pastel Society "Pure Color"Online Juried Exhibition - Aug 2020
Pastel Society of West Coast Online Juried Show, Award - Aug 2020
Pikes Peak Pastel Society National Exhibit “Colors in Quarantine" - Sep 2020
Southwest Florida Pastel Society Exhibit “Valued Strokes” - Sep 2020
Pastel Artists of Oregon “Spirit of Pastel” - Sep 2020
Pastel Society of Southeast Texas Exhibit “Art of Pastel” - Oct 2020
Pastel Society of New Mexico 28th National Exhibit - Oct 2020
Pastel Society of Eastern Canada - Dec 2020
Pastel Society of West Coast Members Show - Feb 2021
American Women Artists – Lifting the Sky: Elevating the Works of American Women - Mar 2021
Left Coast Pastel Painters Society - Feb 2021
Arizona Pastel Artist Association - Mar 2021
Wilmington Art Association Spring Show - May 2021
North Carolina Statewide Pastel Exhibition - May 2021
Pastel Society of New Mexico 29th National Exhibition, Award - May 2021
Central Massachusetts Pastel Society "Marks of Distinction" - June 2021
Pastel Society of the West Coast "Pastel USA 35" - July 2021
Pastel Society of Southern California "Mark Your Mark" - July 2021
Pastel Society of Maine Exhibit - Aug 2021
Pastel Society of North Carolina "Pure Color" Online Show - Sep 2021
Pastel Artists of Oregon MOX - Sep 2021
International Association of Pastel Societies Juried Webshow - Oct 2021
Degas Pastel Society 22nd Members Exhibit - Oct 2021
Piedmont Pastel Society Exhibition - Oct 2021
Pastel Society of New Hampshire "It's Pastel" Exhibition - Nov 2021
Pastel Society of the West Coast “MOOS 2022” Jan 2022
One Woman Show Bev’s Art Gallery Feb 2022
Left Coast Pastel Painters Society Feb 2022
American Women Artists Breaking Through Exhibit Mar 2022
Wilmington Spring Show May 2022
North Carolina Statewide Pastel Exhibition May 2022 Award
International Association of Pastels Societies Juried Exhibit June 2022
Two Woman Show New Elements Gallery June 2022
Pastel Society of the West Coast “Pastel USA 99” July 2022
Pastel Society of New Mexico 30th Nat Exhibition Aug 2022
One Woman Show Triangle Cultural Art Gallery Aug 2022
Great Lakes Pastel Society Online Exhibition Aug 2022
Pastel Society of North Carolina “Pure Color” Online Show Sept 2022 Award
Coastal Carolina Pastel Painters Exhibition - Oct 22
Piedmont Pastel Society Exhibition, First Place - Oct 2022
International Association of Pastels Societies Webshow Oct 2022
Pastel Society of North Carolina Members Show Rocky Mount Oct 2022
Piedmont Pastel Society Exhibition Oct 2022 First Place
National Oil and Acrylic Painters Asso. Exhibit Dec 2022
Pastel Society of Eastern Canada Exhibition Dec. 2022
Left Coast Pastel Painters Exhibit Jan 2023
Arizona Artist Asso Award Feb 2023
Pastel Society of West Coast Members Show Jan 2023
Wilmington Spring Show Feb. 2023
Piedmont Pastel Society Statewide Mar 2023
Red Rock pastel Society Exhibit May 2023
Pastel Society of America June 2023 Award
Pastel Society of West Coast June 2023 Award
Central Mass Pastel Exhibit. July 2023
Coastal Carolina Pastel Painters Leland show Sept 2023
Appalachian Pastel Society Exhibit Oct 2023
IAPS Sept 2023
Southeastern Pastel Society Oct 2023
Piedmont Pastel Society Members Exhibit Oct 2023 2nd Place
Pixel Pastel 2023 Oct 2023
Wilmington Spring Show Jan 2024 Award
Moore Alumni March 2024
Central Mass Pastel Society Members Apr 30 2024
Pastel Painters of Society of Cape Cod May 2024
IAPS June 2024
Thalian Hall July 2024
Great Lakes Pastel Society July 2024
Central Mass Pastel Society Marks of Distinction July 2024
Red Rock July 2024
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