Artist Profile

Kim Smith

Benicia, CA

Of interest to me is the concept of magic, of scale, of layering, of wrapping, concealing, revealing, of maps, of making the mind ask questions about the image. What lies behind and beyond the elements of the image? What story can the viewer build from the image? I continue to discover how the particular elements of my life, particularly youth, shape and inspire the images I am drawn to make.

I’m the daughter of two artists and grew up surrounded by art and artists from around the world. I was occasionally taken to figure drawing classes starting at age 8 and was encouraged to draw classical anatomical sculpture. We had a very extensive library, most of it about art. I was encouraged to experiment creatively; encouraged to “see” from alternate perspectives; encouraged in the idea that inspiration can come from any source. I believe that my unique life experience is the most profound source of meaning in my work.
I work in diverse mediums, and in diverse ways. I enjoy drawing, sculpting and painting from life, objectively, but the thrust of most of my work for the past 35 years is in the exploration of abstracted structure. Of interest to me is the concept of magic, of scale, of wrapping, concealing, revealing, of maps, of making the mind ask questions about the image. What lies behind and beyond the elements of the image?
I was born in New York, New York and received a BFA in Studio Arts from Syracuse University, continuing my studies post-graduate from Syracuse University, Arizona State University, USC, UCLA and College of Marin. I worked 20 years for film industry leading visual effects house Industrial Light & Magic. My work there involved creating camera-ready photo-real practical objects and later evolved into creating digital photo-real imagery. I worked about 16 more years for other effects houses, last working for Phil Tippett at Tippett Studios.
In 2021 I stepped away from the Visual Effects Industry to continue pursuing my own artistic projects. I’ve shown internationally, including a solo show at Green Collections Multiple in Tokyo, Japan. Among my recent shows I was included in the de Young Open 2023, the Mercury 20 Gallery group show “Metamorphosis”, and the Crocker Kingsley Annual 2022-2023.