Ché Reed: Vignettes of an Autistic Mind

Vignettes of an Autistic Mind introduces the first public exhibition of drawings by New Orleans artist and musician Ché Reed. Working primarily in ink on handmade paper, Reed creates intricate compositions that reflect decades of sustained artistic practice.

A graduate of the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, Reed continued his studies in both visual art and music at Southern University at New Orleans while maintaining a lifelong commitment to drawing and tenor saxophone. Under the mentorship of the legendary saxophonist and educator Edward "Kidd" Jordan, Reed embraced the improvisational language of avant-garde jazz, developing an artistic practice in which visual rhythms parallel musical expression. His drawings reveal an intensely personal visual language—iterative, layered, and remarkably precise—offering insight into a mind where memory remains vividly intact. A respected figure within New Orleans' musical community and a member of the distinguished Mayfield family, Reed has been described by Wynton Marsalis as "the incorruptible Ché."