Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Duane Reed Gallery: Thursday, 13 September 2012

Brian D. Smith: "Presence and Recollection

Opening Thursday, September 13th
Reception from 5:00 - 8:00 PM

Brian D. Smith's exhibition explores themes of memory, process and the suggestion of place. Bold shapes and colors predominate the inventive compositional devices of Smith's paintings. The relationships of these parts set the emotional tone of each work while the sensuous qualities of paint and their application result in a powerful and dazzling array of optical effects. Utilizing his responses to nature and his appreciation for the history of painting, Smith's art evokes a dream like world that is both conspicuous and abstract.

“The paintings I create are a documentation of memory and the painting process. Not unlike dioramas, the pictures function as windows into an imagined world and should be understood as suggestions of places, experiences and responses to the art that inspires me. The images evolve in layers our of various states. As forms coalesce, I guide the picture towards an abstracted sense of place. The idea of landscape dominates these images, but the perspective is not necessarily fixed, as they are open to interpretation.”

Also Opening September 13th

Steven Young Lee and Beth Lo

Steven Young Lee examines cultural references and how individuals draw realities based on experiences and environment. Through his sculpture and vessels, he challenges preconceptions of style, form, symbolism, superstitions and identity.

"My work in ceramics and mixed media collage revolves primarily around issues of family and my Asian-American background. Cultural marginality and blending, tradition and Westernization, language and translation are key elements in my work. Since the birth of my son in 1987, I have been drawing inspiration from major events in my family’s history, the day-to-day challenges of parenting, and my own childhood memories of being raised in a minority culture in the United States. I also enjoy investigating, celebrating and sometimes satirizing traditional Asian aesthetics, including calligraphy, origami, scrolls, Socialist Realist artwork, Chinese souvenirs and toys, the game of mahjong, as well as Ming and Tang dynasty ceramics."

These exhibitions run through Saturday, October 13, 2012.

4729 McPherson Ave
Saint Louis, MO 63108

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