On September 12, 2026, Samuel Lynne Galleries opened the Inaugural Reflectionist Exhibition at 1105 Dragon Street in Dallas. It was the first time all nine founding Reflectionist artists showed together, and the first public exhibition of Reflectionism, the dimensional oil painting movement JD Miller founded in Dallas in 2001. Opening night sold out with more than 1,300 RSVPs, and nearly every work sold that night. The exhibition ran until October 10, 2026.

At a glance

• Exhibition: The Inaugural Reflectionist Exhibition
• Dates: September 12 to October 10, 2026
• Venue: Samuel Lynne Galleries, 1105 Dragon Street, Dallas, TX 75207
• Artists: JD Miller (founder), Philip Romano, Lea Fisher, Carrie Cameron, Sharon Virts, Renea Menzies, Sue Yu Petty, Kelly Steller Hrad and Tanner Lawley
• Opening night: Saturday, September 12, 6 to 9 PM. RSVPs sold out before the doors opened.
• Press: FOX 4 News, Artdaily, MSN, Yahoo News and The Tommy Habeeb Show
• Catalog: The Reflectionist Exhibition Catalog

Opening night of the Inaugural Reflectionist Exhibition, Samuel Lynne Galleries, Dallas, September 12, 2026.

What Reflectionism is

Reflectionism is a contemporary movement in dimensional oil painting. The artists build oil paint up with palette knives until the surface stands one to two inches off the canvas, so each painting is an object as much as an image. As the light changes and as you move, the surface changes with it.

The movement rests on one idea, the Reflectionist Principle: the constructive intention an artist brings to the canvas is preserved in the finished work. Every artist in the exhibition paints with that intention deliberately, and each brings a different voice to it.

It also explains the one request the movement makes of its audience. A Reflectionist painting has to be seen in person. A phone, a computer or a printed reproduction flattens the surface the work depends on, which is why the opening mattered as much as it did.

Where it began: two paintings from one night in 1998

Before he made his first dimensional work, JD Miller studied the classical principles of painting under the American artist Liz Richardson: the Golden Mean, color relationships, composition, and the use of the painting knife to keep oil color rich and alive.

In 1998 she gave him his first private lesson and painted Golden Aspen on a Summer Day in front of him. That same night he went home and painted Costa Rica Red Roof. Twenty-eight years later, both paintings hung side by side in this exhibition for the first time, a record of knowledge passing from one hand to the next.

Liz Richardson, Golden Aspen on a Summer Day, 1998. 24 x 20 in.

JD Miller, Costa Rica Red Roof, 1998. 24 x 30 in.

Painted on the same night in 1998 and shown side by side for the first time at the Inaugural Reflectionist Exhibition.

From there Miller pushed his oil paint further off the canvas until the surface became sculptural. In 2001 he joined that technique to the Reflectionist Principle, and Reflectionism began. Over the following years he trained the eight artists who stood beside him on September 12. The full story is told on reflectionism.org/origins.

Each of the nine artists was introduced on the wall with a biography board. JD Miller's is shown here.

Nine artists, one movement

Each artist chose four works for the exhibition. Together they show that Reflectionism is a shared philosophy and technique, not a single style.

• JD Miller, founder. Dallas. His works included Crown Reflection II, Midnight Sanctuary, Luminous Symphony and the 72 by 72 inch Project Pegasus.
• Philip Romano. A New York native based in Dallas, known for dramatic color on large canvases. He showed Red Letter Day, Crossing the Line II and International LIX.
• Lea Fisher. A Dallas painter and licensed psychotherapist whose abstractions, Self Portraits and Power Portraits explore personal transformation. She showed The Dragon that Painted the Wind.
• Carrie Cameron. Based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with color and light shaped by years in Mexico and travels through Europe. Her works included Rosas Para Mi Amor.
• Sharon Virts. A bestselling historical novelist who paints the Virginia countryside, including Daffodil Drift and Ditch Lily Lane.
• Renea Menzies. A former international model working from her studio in Aspen, Colorado, in saturated color and sweeping movement, including Star Burst and Snow Blooms.
• Sue Yu Petty. Based in Blue Ridge, Texas, she paints faith-led work in bold color. She showed her four-part Hummingbird Haiku series.
• Kelly Steller Hrad. A Texas abstract painter with New Mexico roots, working in layered color and gesture, including Flourish and Daydream.
• Tanner Lawley. A Dallas-area painter known for his heart paintings and for painting live before audiences, including Universal Love and Platinum Love.

Full biographies and every work are in the exhibition catalog and on the Reflectionist artists page.

Sharon Virts's wall: her four works in the exhibition.

Opening night

The doors opened at 6 PM on Saturday, September 12. More than 1,300 people had RSVP'd, and the list closed days earlier. The gallery was full all evening with collectors, artists, first-time gallery visitors and the nine founding Reflectionists themselves. In the days before, the gallery had offered private previews to press, curators and invited guests.

The room was full from the start. Gallery artists Phil Luangrath and Favio Landeira joined the crowd, and photographer Beau Simmons attended his first event as a newly represented Samuel Lynne Galleries artist.

Nearly every work sold that night.

JD Miller's Project Pegasus, 72 by 72 inches, on opening night.

In the press

Four days after the opening, FOX 4 News aired a segment on JD Miller and the launch of Reflectionism as a new contemporary art movement, and further coverage followed.

• FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth: Dallas artist JD Miller launches new contemporary art movement dubbed Reflectionism (video), also carried by Yahoo News.
• Artdaily: What Is Reflectionism? Inside the Three-Dimensional Oil Painting Movement Founded by JD Miller
• MSN: Reflectionism explained: How this three-dimensional oil painting movement works and why it must be seen in person
• The Tommy Habeeb Show: JD Miller: The Art of Reflectionism, Mentorship, and Building a Movement (video)

The gallery's announcement of the exhibition was also published by Business Insider, StreetInsider and Digital Journal. Every item is collected on the Reflectionism press page, and more coverage of the gallery and its artists is on our News and Press page.

After the opening

The exhibition stayed on view for four more weeks, a run that took in Samuel Lynne Galleries' 18th anniversary on Dragon Street. By the time it closed on October 10, every available painting had found a home.

That is the point the movement makes about itself. This group of paintings will not hang together again. The people who stood in front of them have seen something a photograph cannot hold.

Guests on opening night, September 12, 2026.

Where to see Reflectionism now

• Visit the gallery. Reflectionist works by JD Miller and others are on view at Samuel Lynne Galleries, 1105 Dragon Street, Dallas. Hours are Monday to Friday, 10 AM to 5 PM, and Saturday, 11 AM to 5 PM. Request a private gallery viewing.
• Browse the work. See JD Miller's available paintings and the full exhibition page.
• Read more. JD Miller and the Reflectionism Movement, and the Live Reflectionist Experience 2026, JD Miller's annual Valentine's live painting.
• What's next. Tyler Shields launched The Book at the gallery on October 17, and his exhibition is on view through November 4. Read the Tyler Shields recap. Then David Yarrow: Where Shadows Fall opens on Saturday, November 14, 2026, from 6 to 9 PM.

Questions about Reflectionism

What is Reflectionism?
Reflectionism is a contemporary art movement that turns classical oil painting into a three-dimensional experience. Its artists build oil paint with palette knives into sculptural surfaces that change with light and viewing angle, and they paint with deliberate constructive intention, which the movement holds is preserved in the work.

Who founded Reflectionism?
JD Miller founded Reflectionism in Dallas, Texas, in 2001. He trained the eight other founding Reflectionist artists.

Who are the nine founding Reflectionist artists?
JD Miller (founder), Philip Romano, Lea Fisher, Carrie Cameron, Sharon Virts, Renea Menzies, Sue Yu Petty, Kelly Steller Hrad and Tanner Lawley.

When and where was the first Reflectionist exhibition?
The Inaugural Reflectionist Exhibition opened at Samuel Lynne Galleries, 1105 Dragon Street, Dallas, on September 12, 2026, and ran until October 10, 2026.

Why does Reflectionism have to be seen in person?
The paint stands off the canvas, so the surface changes continuously as light and the viewer move. A screen or a printed reproduction shows only one fixed, flat view of it.

Where can I see Reflectionist paintings now?
At Samuel Lynne Galleries in the Dallas Design District. You can visit during opening hours or request a private viewing.

Photography by Chase Hall Photography. Sources: The Reflectionist Exhibition Catalog (Samuel Lynne Galleries, 2026); FOX 4 News, September 16, 2026; reflectionism.org.