Project Ability : Artists : Robert Reddick

Robert Reddick

Robert Reddick attended Project Ability’s Aspire programme for over ten years and was dedicated to drawing; compiling sketchbooks after sketchbooks full of doodles exploring Glasgow’s history and language in a predominantly monochrome aesthetic that reflects the grey skies of the city.

Reddick’s intricate drawings consist of layers, text and loose arrangements exploring the act of reflecting and drawn directly from memory alluding to an autobiographical approach. Robert was a thoroughly good artist with a prodigious output which belied his advanced years. His distinctive shaky lines had an eloquent fluidity over which he had precise control. He worked at great speed, his line revealing and rearranging forms and shapes. His characteristic understanding of structure, as he filled sheet after sheet with crowded lines, could almost obscure the detail of the composition until he pulled it back to order and the form surfaced. At other times his line was sparse and elegantly positioned within an empty space.

Robert sadly passed away peacefully in January 2012. His family have gifted his archive to Project Ability.