Greg Breda
Greg Breda’s paintings offer spaces of interiority in which light, gesture, and restraint converge. Working on silken polyester, Breda constructs atmospheric environments shaped by repetitive and visible brushstrokes and a muted palette. Resisting spectacle, his subjects rarely engage the viewer; they turn inward, in states of tranquility. Light in his work functions less as a source of illumination than as a conduit for transformation, enveloping the figure in meditative stillness. Plants and indeterminate fields of color act as emotional architecture, holding space for memory and breath. Across his practice Breda creates portraits that prioritize quiet and subtle revelation.
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![Expressive painting of a Black man, face turned toward the sun, in front of a gingko tree with yellow leaves]()
Greg Breda, Enoch's Meditation, 2025Acrylic on polyester canvas. Courtesy of the artist and PATRON, Chicago. Photo: Brica Wilcox
Greg Breda was born in 1959 in Los Angeles. Often working on translucent surfaces, Breda paints intimate portraits suffused with symbolism and light. Recent solo and two-person exhibitions include Patron Gallery, Chicago (2024, 2021, 2018) and Patron Gallery, New York (2019). Recent group exhibitions include the African American Museum in Philadelphia (2024); Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit (2024); Sean Kelly Gallery, Los Angeles (2024); Lubeznik Center for the Arts, Michigan City, IN (2022); Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2021); Columbus Museum of Art, OH (2021); Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (2020); California African American Museum, Los Angeles (2019, 2017); Jeffrey Deitch Gallery, Los Angeles (2019); Xavier University of Louisiana Art Gallery, New Orleans (2018); and Advocate & Gochis Galleries, Los Angeles (2014).