Welcome to the twenty-fifth blog post from the Collection Technicians.
Phillip Reeves was an influential contemporary artist who was appointed head of print making at Glasgow School of Art in 1970 he was also one of the founders of the Glasgow Print Studio. Reeves studied at the Royal College of Art during the 1950s, and it was here he was taught to print. Reeve’s work is layered, sometimes using collages of multiple materials and other times using one singular colour wash across an entire piece.
Reeves’ works often uses found objects, as seen in his piece ‘Belt,’ an etching made using a found piece of metal. His work also often takes an architectural form, he has a range of pieces showing ‘Vertical Architecture’ and side elevations. These works place flat planes together side by side, their colours and materials sometimes overlapping, their composition comes together to create a silhouette of a building or structure.
This piece by Reeves in our collection is titled ‘Westbury Landscape,’ it was made in 1978 using watercolour and collage. Here you can see Reeves’ early exploration into his later ideas of shapes and colours creating a two-dimensional urban landscape. The blocks and shapes overlap to create fields and foliage, at the centre is the Westbury White Horse also known as the Bratton White Horse. The Westbury White Horse is located on Salisbury Plain, it is said to have originated from around 1778. Chalk horses are made by cutting the topsoil away to show the chalk or limestone beneath. This chalk drawing method is a little like Reeves’ work which builds material and collage only to be taken away to expose the layers beneath, which is maybe why Reeves decided to make a chalk horse the centre of one of his pieces.
Caring for the Collection is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund Scotland.
Thanks to National Lottery players, we will be able to dedicate time to improve the condition of our artworks currently in our store, so that they will be able to be displayed in health and social care settings across Scotland.
Museum & Galleries Technician Modern Apprenticeship is supported by Museums Galleries Scotland provider of the apprenticeship, mentor and SCQF level 7
26 October 2026 by
Vanessa Paynton