Cavan Reed-O’Connor, based in Aberdeen, graduated from Gray’s School of Art in 2024 with a First-Class BA (Hons) in Painting. In his final year, he received both the John Gray Legacy Award and the Visual Arts Scotland Graduate Showcase Award.
Cavan’s practice explores the ambiguity and resonance of daily life, emphasising the patience and subtle beauty found in mundane and often ignored subjects. Utilising oils, he highlights fragments of typical surroundings rendered with a delicate yet evocative precision. To accentuate these intriguing moments, he frames these cropped fragments within monochromatic hints of the surrounding space. His work encourages viewers to reconsider their perceptions of the environments they encounter, revealing the emotional and narrative depth hidden within the seemingly ordinary.
In his latest series, Cavan documents a single flânerie walk through Copenhagen, Denmark. By deliberately narrowing his focus to this journey, he immerses himself in the present, capturing the subtle interactions, nuances, and textures he encounters along the way.
