(Born Derbyshire, England,
1944) is a naturalized Bahamian. He has been remarkably adept at
applying his ironic sense of humour and stylized realism to the slices
of the Bahamian landscape
he paints. Amused, yet clearly concerned by the obsessive Bahamian love
affair with the motor car
and an all-pervasive pre-occupation with consumerism and television,
Smith’s work ‘speaks’ more
candidly and bluntly of social issues than any Bahamian artist of his
generation, with the exception
of Max Taylor.
A 1964 graduate of the Derby College of Art and a post-grad student of
the
of Art in
and worked as an art teacher in the school system
between 1973 and 1990. His highly stylized
realist technique has also enabled him to enjoy
some success as a designer and graphic artist and
he has had
work published in Vogue, the Sunday Times Colour Magazine and Hot Car in
His work hangs in many private collections, the
most significant of which is that of
well-known
collector Frederick R. Weisman.
Many of his paintings depicting Bahamian
situations play upon the television image, as
much for it’s value as a statement of incongruity
as a ubiquitous pictorial presence, as for it’s
visual dot-pattern structure, which Smith employs
to create an electronic pointillist impression.
These images are merged or super-imposed upon
realist images of urban situations, creating a
pointed statement about the role which television
has usurped within the social life of The Bahamas.
He also uses the juxtaposition technique to make
similar statements about the Bahamian
relationship with the motor car. Landscapes are
viewed through rer-view mirrors or windscreens
and his paintings are composed around sections
created by trivia of the automobile age: dangling
dice or air fresheners. In
fact, Smith’s area of concern has been things American and their
smothering effect on cultural
values of The Bahamas.
“I lived in
The Bahamas since 1973, most of my work refers to the numerous cultural
influences existing side by
side. An uneasy cultural pluralism exists, which presents images of
and paradox” he says, recalling his Bahamian stint. “Tourism has a wide–ranging visual impact, as has the
all-pervasive need for importation. Add to the mix an African heritage superimposed on a colonial past and
you have a rich source ofimagery
on which to draw.
“I suppose
being English born, I was something of a cultural transplant myself”, he says
candidly. “I was able, however, to develop a sort of triangular ‘exile’
sensibility, which became the
very
essence of my work – looking in on
through English eyes.
“My work
freely tapped the cumulative imagery
surrounding me in The Bahamas,” he
continues. “So, rather than dealing with specific moments in time, each
painting came to represent
a synthesis of various things, from various times, employing ‘style’ as
subject rather than a
classification of artistic descent.”
