Dean Smith

  • Dean Smith's drawings and collages reflect upon the measure of time, the peculiarities of space, and the ceaseless human impulse to render the invisible visible. Works from Smith’s labyrinth series depict ahistorical geometric forms drawn precisely, on found vintage paper—time presented both as rumination and physical fact. His environment collages, sourced from 19th century engraving illustrations, are arranged to abstract rather than reveal their figural nature.

  • Exhibitions
  • A recipient of a California Arts Council Fellowship Award, Smith's work is placed in prominent public collections, including The British Museum; Hammer Museum; LACMA; Buffalo AKG Art Museum; The Art Institute of Chicago; Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts; and the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive.
    He is represented by Anglim/Trimble, San Francisco and Eli Ridgway Gallery, Lisbon, Portugal, and has had solo presentations at Christopher Grimes Gallery, Santa Monica; Marvelli Gallery, New York; and Gallery Joe, Philadelphia in addition to numerous group exhibitions in galleries nationally and internationally.
    Smith lives and works in Oakland, California.
  • Works
    • Dean Smith, advent #2, 2022
      Dean Smith
      advent #2, 2022
      Archival inkjet on Hahnemühle photo paper
      95.25 x 59.5 inches
    • Dean Smith, advent #3, 2022
      Dean Smith
      advent #3, 2022
      Archival inkjet on Hahnemühle photo paper
      95.25 x 59.5 inches
    • Dean Smith, environment #33, 2020
      Dean Smith
      environment #33, 2020
      collage of found illustrations
      8.25 x 5.44 inches
      13.25 x 10.44 inches, framed
    • Dean Smith, untitled [dsl_52], 2019
      Dean Smith
      untitled [dsl_52], 2019
      graphite on found vintage paper
      11 x 7.94 inches
      16 x 13.75 inches, framed
    • Dean Smith, untitled [dsl_14], 2015
      Dean Smith
      untitled [dsl_14], 2015
      Graphite on found vintage paper
      8.38 x 6.5 inches
      16 x 13.75 inches, framed
    • Dean Smith, environment #2, 2014
      Dean Smith
      environment #2, 2014
      collage of found illustrations
      5.25 x 7.5 inches
      15 x 17.75 inches, framed