Nevil Dwek Returns to His Roots With 'Selective Memory,' a Solo Exhibition at Kate Oh Gallery

New York native Nevil Dwek returns to his roots this spring with "Selective Memory," a solo exhibition at Kate Oh Gallery, running from May 1 to May 17. The show, Dwek's first solo exhibition, showcases his multidisciplinary approach to art, blending photography, writing, and experimental materials to explore the elusive nature of memory and presence.

"The work started with my background in filmmaking. When I reflect on things, it’s always been visual—and for me, often through the act of looking out a window. That view tends to pull me back to something deeply nostalgic."

A graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, Dwek spent years honing his eye in film and photography, working with high-profile clients like Peter Marino, Chanel, and Ralph Lauren. Yet it was the emotional resonance of memory—often triggered by a fleeting glimpse through a window—that ultimately drew him deeper into fine art.

"I love the idea of capturing a still," Dwek explained. "But I didn’t want it to be just a regular photograph hanging on the wall. I wanted something that feels more like what a film does…. like the feeling of looking out a window from a moving car, when everything is passing by."

To create that layered, immersive effect, Dwek began experimenting with glass, mirrors, aluminum, and plexiglass, among other materials. "It took me a few years to make it work, so it wouldn’t fall or break," he said with a laugh. "My framers thought I was crazy. I didn’t want a traditional frame. I wanted it to feel like a real window."

In "Selective Memory," Dwek draws from his personal photography archive, constructing dimensional works that combine photography, writing, hand-cut films, and even alcohol inks to evoke the shifting, dreamlike nature of recollection.

"What we remember depends on where we are now," he said. "It changes. It depends on your emotional state. And sometimes if there's something that's going on presently and by going back to something, sometimes these things will pop up in your head and you don't know why."

Curating the exhibition, he said, was like editing a film. "The body of work has to have a thematic feeling to it," Dwek explained. "Sometimes I'll put them all in front and I'll just stare at them and I'll kind of just try to see what works and what doesn't. It's almost like scenes in a film—scene one, scene two."

The decision to hold the exhibition at Kate Oh Gallery was serendipitous. "I just walked by the gallery one day and I went in and I started talking to the gallerist," he recalled. "It just came together naturally."

The location—31 East 72nd Street—is especially meaningful. "It's in my neighborhood where I grew up," Dwek said. "I'm a native New Yorker. Born at Lennox Hill Hospital, lived on 72nd and third and now on 74th. This is on 72nd Street. So I'm excited about that. It feels very personal."

Dwek's creative evolution from filmmaker to artist was less a sharp turn than a natural progression. After directing his first feature film in 2003, he found himself looking for new creative outlets. "I picked up my camera and just started shooting," he said. "But I always had a side project—exploring ways to push the photograph further into an artful way, to give it more of an edge or a different feel."

His work soon caught the attention of fashion and design heavyweights. A chance encounter led to a commission with architect Peter Marino. "My friend had them [his artworks] on her table and he walked by, pointed to them. He goes, 'I love those,'" Dwek recalled.

As for his signature style, Dwek described it as deeply layered and personal. "Even if it’s just a flower, I’ll often fragment it… blur some parts, isolate others. I try to give it a personality," he said. "There are always layers, always messages hidden in the image."

Though Dwek draws some inspiration from artists, his strongest influences come from cinema. "My influences are more cinematic, more directors than visual artists," he said. "I watched a lot of old films growing up, especially French cinema. It’s very reflective, very introspective."

Despite technological shifts in photography, Dwek sees opportunity rather than competition. "I knew this when the smart phones, when Instagram and all things were happening, it kind of challenged me more," he said. "That’s when I started using more materials—I knew I had to go beyond just the image."

Even AI, he said, is a tool rather than a threat. "Rather than fight it, I use it."

For Dwek, the ultimate goal is to create work that resonates emotionally and visually. "When you look at one of my pieces, you can tell it’s mine," he said. "That’s what I admire in the artists I love—you recognize their work immediately."

"Selective Memory" offers a glimpse into that layered, ever-shifting space where memory, emotion, and art meet—a window, quite literally, into Dwek's world.

The exhibition will feature an opening reception on May 1st from 6 to 8 p.m., an author reading with Michelle Young on May 8th, and an artist talk during the Madison Avenue Spring Gallery Walk on May 17th.