Chad Smith prefers a direct yet studied approach to plein air painting. It has been said of his work: “Not just ‘a scene’ but a real statement about something, yet not forced or melodramatic.” Smith has gallery representation in New York, Colorado, Florida, South Carolina and is collected internationally. He has shown in national juried exhibitions including: Finger Lakes Plein Air (Best of Show), Plein Air Easton! (Honorable Mention), American Impressionist Society’s Annual National Juried Exhibition (Award of Distinction) and Crested Butte Plein Air Invitationals to name a few. Recently, Smith spent a month painting and teaching in Ireland. Smith currently resides in Durham North Carolina with his wife, Erin and chocolate lab Sargent.
From the artist:
“As an ‘on the spot’ painter, I find great satisfaction in capturing the immediacy of the moment. I liken this to Jazz improvisation. The more practiced and skilled one is the more clarity and meaning one brings to the ‘performance.’
My process is simple, search a location set up my French easel and paint. Working outdoors allows any number of variables from weather to interested onlookers. Sometimes it is a wonder I get any work done, which makes the successes that much sweeter.
I paint subjects that resonate both personally and visually. It is when the viewer gets a similar visceral response to the work I know I have touched on something important. More than anything else my work is autobiographical in nature and each piece is a summation of my experience as a human being and artist to that point.”
