Reginald Neal’s canvases appear at first to be derivations from Rothko in which rectangular fields occur one on another in close color ranges of low intensities, defined largely by value contrast. A textural treatment of pigment adds to the illusion of melting boundaries and contributes a uniquely sensuous quality to canvases otherwise basically classic in spacial order. Most curious, however, are the conceptual associations established, partly by image and partly by title. In the Beginning and A Quiet Place seem simple, silent reservoirs of strength. Orange Constellation introduces the star symbol, Banner for a Crusade, the flag. Seemingly sequential, both symbols occur in Big Flag, Green Flag, Battle Flag, Blue Flag, and the imagery of Rothko is forgotten. In Duality the artist comes to something quite strange and personal. The large piece, actually two canvases, is bound into a single unit by a sequence of borders. On each, the star appears in an irregular form, bounded by a circle on a rectangular ground, red on the left side, blue on the right. An ambiguity of meaning complicates what was at first simple and familiar. But, in the end, the novelty of Neal’s image seems to have been explored completely and exhausted––possibly not. Although his drawings and lithographs appear redundant (Old Fragment, a drawing dated 1962, echoes closely Celtic Apparition, an oil of 1961), he may find new resources compatible with his present style.
—Harriette von Breton
