The Yellow Flower 1908

Robert Lewis Reid made "The Yellow Flower" with oil on canvas, though we don't know exactly when. The colours are gentle and there's a breezy feeling in how the strokes move. It's like Reid wasn’t trying to capture a specific flower but more like the idea of a flower, which is like art in general, right? The way the light filters through the leaves and illuminates the yellow of her skirt feels so fresh. You can almost feel the warmth of the sun. I find myself staring at the folds of the woman's dress – they are painted with such delicate detail, and the way the yellow catches the light is amazing. It’s like Reid wanted to show us how light can transform the mundane into something truly special. There's this back-and-forth between what’s actually there and what we imagine. Reid's work reminds me a little of John Singer Sargent, who also had this way of capturing light and beauty in everyday scenes. Art is like a big conversation that never ends, and everyone is just adding their own little piece to the story.