Duane Reed Gallery is pleased to announce the opening reception of their latest exhibition, Harumi Nakashima and Aya Mori with a special presentation of artist Kevin Snipes.

Japanese artist Harumi Nakashima creates free-form ceramic sculptures that feature organic, yet psychedelic characteristics. Nakashima, mostly known for beautifully structured, odd geometric shapes embellished with iconic polka dots, works with a level of intricacy that demonstrates the artist’s attention to detail. A contemporary aesthetic and subtle, refined references to traditional Japanese pottery allow the works to be perceived aesthetically rather than functionally

Aya Mori follows in the footsteps of her mentor and teacher Harumi Nakashima. She graduated from Aichi University in 2014 with her BA, where Nakashima teaches. Mori has since participated in several prestigious exhibitions in her very early career, including the Hagi Grand Prize Exhibition, Yamaguchi, Japan (2017) and the 10th International Ceramics Competition in Gifu, Japan (2014) where she received the Special Judges Award.

Kevin Snipes is an American visual artist born in Philadelphia and raised in Cleveland. Snipes’ artwork explores concepts of otherness by employing techniques of figurative narration and craft to form objects that cross the boundary between sculpture and painting. His work is a combination of atypical pottery forms, quirky figurative drawings and contemporary vernacular language. Kevin’s work is influenced by an array of traditional and nontraditional art forms, including street art, architecture, contemporary painting, the avid love of art history and even children’s toys and drawings. His work has an underlying sophistication, which is based in existentialist thought, creating a dynamic body of work that is both culturally transcendent and personally identifiable. Through this use of multi-faceted self referential narratives Snipes challenges the viewer to consider the concept of otherness in confrontation with the self.