JACK REILLY is known for his abstract paintings on geometric shaped-canvas structures. As one of the original artists associated with the Abstract Illusionism movement of the late 1970s, Reilly’s early work incorporated a minimalist approach to abstract painting with visual elements that appeared to extend beyond the two-dimensional picture plane and into the viewers space. Recognized as one of the formost American artists working in shaped canvas, for the past three decades Reilly has maintained an affinity for simplicity in painting, albeit shrouded in complex visual systems and laborious technique.

Reilly’s geometric paintings combine a through attention to composition and surface detail, which is based around mathematical systems and perspective. Each painting is made up of thousands of individual brushstrokes, painted in acrylic polymers and metallic pigments on a shaped canvas structure. Color compositions combine theoretical systems and elements of serendipity, which are arranged in linear formats that interact with the shape of the canvas. Reilly’s signature brushwork has been compared to the complexity of Byzantine mosaics and the luminosity of Gothic stained glass.

Aside from whatever aesthetic appeal Reilly’s paintings offer, these works reappraise and comment on evolving issues in abstract painting that originated in twentieth century art and continue into today's contemporary genres. Ultimately, Reilly’s works are poetic objects of contemplation that straddle the line between painting and sculpture, while drawing upon the dynamic power of line, shape, color and structure.

"The minimalist tag is a bad fit, or at lease a loose one... it would be more accurately defined as maximal and labor intensive...ascetic action painting." Josef Woodard: SANTA BARBARA NEWS PRESS.
"Quintessentially Post Modern," Nancy Ann Jones: ARTWEEK.
"Completely Outrageous," Marlena Donahue: LOS ANGELES TIMES.
"An innovative use of mixed-media materials is combined with a sense of Baroque restlessness," Edward Lucie-Smith: AMERICAN ART NOW.