The Mirror 1910

Robert Lewis Reid made "The Mirror" with oil on canvas, though the exact date is unknown. Look at how Reid builds the composition using a tapestry of brushstrokes; this isn't about smooth blending, but more about laying colors and textures next to each other. For me that says everything about how art isn't about perfecting an image, but more about working through the process. Consider the woman's blue dress. It's not just "blue," it's a whole range of blues, from almost turquoise to a deep indigo, applied in short, visible strokes that give the fabric a shimmering, almost liquid quality. Then, look at the reflection in the mirror she’s holding, it is a direct echo of the light behind the Japanese screen, which suggests her identity as being one with the overall composition. Reid, as a student of the French Impressionists, probably took cues from artists like Degas in his approach to both colour and subject matter. Yet, with its flattened perspective and decorative motifs, “The Mirror” also points towards the work of artists like James McNeill Whistler, suggesting art is a place of conversations across time and styles.