The Wisconsin-based sculptor Bill Reid is known for his witty and fantasy-filled sculptures of animals inspired by word play. Indeed, animal puns fill his own writings about his art! While most of his sculptures today are larger in scale and constructed out of steel, his earlier works are primarily in ceramic. They nonetheless show the same sense of humor and joy that has been a hallmark of the artist’s career. When speaking of his process, Reid says:  

 

“My process of working is elemental; using only a few hand tools and the heat of the torch I build my creatures out of thin sheets of metal and steel rods. Even as a young boy, I was drawn to the siren call of fire. Like a detective, I turn on the heat until the steel talks. Like an astronomer, I study faint sparks of light in the distance and I try to bring them closer by telling their stories about life in the mowzone layer.”

 

The artist received his Master of Fine Arts from the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan. His work has gained him numerous awards and has allowed him dozens of exhibitions across the country.

 

EDUCATION

MFA                      Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, MI

BFA                        Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO

Tulsa Welding School, Tulsa, OK

 

SELECTED COMMISSIONS & PUBLIC WORKS

2014                         Featured Artist on Milwaukee Public Television’s The Arts Page

2011                         RAM on the Road/Wustum on Wheels, painting commission

2007                         Artwork featured in BBC program, Treasures of India Sea Turtle Chess Board, Racine Public Library, Racine, WI

2004                         North Beach Bike Racks, Racine, WI

2004                         Ivory Billed Woodpecker, Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithica, NY

2000                         Brady Street Beasts, Brady and Holton Streets, Milwaukee, WI

1996                         George’s Penguin, George’s Tavern, Racine, WI

1995                         Hawk Bench, The Prairie School, Racine, WI

1994 & 1992          Windows at Tiffanys, Tiffany & Co., San Francisco, CA

1992                         Freeing the Animals, Racine Zoo, Racine, WI

1988                         Monument to the Unknown Birdwatcher, Milwaukee County Zoo, WI

 

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2015                       Racine Art Museum Artist Fellowship Winners Exhibition (August)

2014                       What Could Bee?, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI

2013                       Peacabill Kingdom, Delafield Arts Center, Delafield, WI

2012                       Zoom…, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL (2 person show)

2010                       One from Wisconsin, Museum of Wisconsin Art, West Bend, WI

2009                       Birds of Steel, Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithica, NY

                                Another Moving Experience, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI

2007                       WHEELS, Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI

                                Pieceabill Kingdom, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI

2006-07                Flying through the Windows, Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI

2006                       Featured Artist, Tory Folliard Gallery, Fish Creek, WI

2005                       New Arrivals, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI

2003                       New Sculpture, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI

1997                       Featured Artist, Boerner Botanical Gardens, Milwaukee, WI

                                Bee Seeing You, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL

1996                       Wit and Sensibility, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL

1994                       On a Roll, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL

1993                       Bill Reid- Metal Sculpture, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL

1989                       Recent Sculpture, University of Wisconsin-Parkside, Kenosha, WI

1989                       Small Scale Satirical Sculptures, David Barnett Gallery, Milwaukee, WI

1986                       Bill Reid, Lawrence University, Appleton, WI

 

SELECTED MUSEUM/PUBLIC EXHIBITIONS

2015                       Kindred Collecting…, Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI                

Wildlife Biennial XVII, Miller Art Museum, Sturgeon Bay, WI

2014                       Once Upon a Time: Fairy Tales…,  Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI

                                Animal Craft, Fowler-Kellogg Art Center, Chautauqua Institute, NY

2013                       25th Anniversary Exhibition, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI

                                Wildlife Biennial XVI, Miller Art Museum, Sturgeon Bay, WI

2012                       A Passion for Pets, Miller Art Museum, Sturgeon Bay, WI

                                Found Object Exhibition, Snyderman-Works Galleries, Philadelphia, PA

2011                       AnimalCraft, Fowler-Kellogg Art Center, Chautauqua Institution, NY

                                Racine and Vicinity Juried Competition, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

2010                       The Marvelous Toys…, HF Johnson Gallery of Art,Carthage College, Kenosha, WI

                                Word Play and Menagerie of the Mind, Kohler Art Center, Sheboygan, WI

2007                       Art Zoo, Appleton Art Center, Appleton, WI

2004                       Raminals, Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI

                                Toys Designed by Artists, Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, AR (also 2003, 2002, & 2000)

2001                       Toy With Us, Palo Alto Arts Center, CA

1999                       Objects of Sound, Bloomington Art Museum, Bloomington, IN

                                The End is Near, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

1998                       Dress Up, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

1997                       Artists of a Different Caliber, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA

1996                       Fantimals, Chicago Children’s Museum, Chicago, IL

                                Just Add Water, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

1995                       Let’s Play House, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

1994                       The Aesthetics of Athletes, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

                                Beyond Furniture, Suburban Fine Arts Center, Highland Park, IL

1993                       Aquatic Visions, John Shedd Aquarium, Chicago, IL

                                Pet Show, Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI

1992                       Serious Fun, Society for Contemporary Crafts, Pittsburgh, PA

1991                       A Beastly Exhibition, South Bend Art Center, South Bend, IN

1990                       Our Ladies of Art, John Michael Kohler Art Center, Sheboygan, WI

1989                       Wisconsin Biennial, Rahr West Museum, Manitowoc, WI

                                Dashboard Art, John Michael Kohler Art Center, Sheboygan, WI

                                The Aesthetic Experience, Wustum Museum of Art, Racine, WI

                                Wisconsin Artists, Springfield Art Association, Springfield, IL

1988                       A Venture Into Installation, Walker’s Point Center for the Arts, Milwaukee, WI

1986                       On Site, Milwaukee County Zoo, Sponsored by the Milwaukee Art Museum

                                Marriage à la Mode, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

1984                       Cow Show, Wustum Museum, Racine, WI

1982                       Wisconsin Biennial, Madison Art Center, Madison, WI

 

SELECTED COLLECTIONS

National Music Museum, Vermillion, SD

Cornell Institute of Ornithology, Ithica, NY

Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI

The Guest House at Wingspread, Racine, WI

The Racine Zoo