herringer kiss gallery | Reneé Duval

Laurel Smith is a contemporary minimal painter who lives and works in Calgary, Canada. She studied art at the University of Calgary and went on to receive a BFA with distinction from the Alberta College of Art and Design, Calgary, and a MFA from Concordia University, Montreal. She is the recipient of several awards including: Canada Council for the Arts; Alberta Foundation for the Arts; Eastern Canada Winner of the RBC Investments 6th Annual Painting Competition; The Brucebo Foundation; Concordia University Fellowship; Sheila Hugh MacKay Foundation; and she was awarded both the Illingworth Kerr Travel Award and the Illingworth Kerr Academic Achievement Award. Smith’s paintings reside in public and private collections including the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Visby Konstmuseum, Glenbow Museum, and Royal Bank of Canada. Her work has appeared in Canadian Art Magazine, Mass Art Guide, The Calgary Herald, Globe and Mail, RBC 2008 Calendar, Watercolor Magazine, FastForward Magazine, The Link, and in exhibition catalogues.

Laurel Smith was born near the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Her paintings echo that environment. The early works were constructed by applying the sludge residue of recycled oil paints onto shaped canvases. These paintings are reminiscent of the geological strata of rock formations. The shadows cast by the shaped canvases informed and evolved into her minimal paintings that cast reflected color onto the wall. Her newest body of paintings combine two diametrically opposed design styles: the austerity of 20C Minimalism and ornate embellishment of 18C Rococo into a form that Smith coins "Ornaminimalism". Smith combines industrial with handmade techniques by applying more than twenty glazes of colors to create an all-over surface upon her custom laser cut panels. The dense color of the multi-layered surface contrasts the borders of the paintings' edges. These contrasting edges activate the wall as an ornamental element thereby expanding the traditional boundaries and impact that paintings have upon their surround. Her works reflect her longstanding fascination of class and taste. Smith states, "The paintings reflect my view of contemporary society's excessive consumer culture, which contradicts a desire for the simple." The paintings have titles like ‘The glee of little kings’, ‘Monarchy of the minimal’, ‘Fuss’, and ‘Apres nous, le deluge’.

Solo Exhibitions:
2008 - Paintings by Laurel Smith - Herringer Kiss Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
2007 - Ornaminimalism – Peak Gallery, Toronto, Ontario 2005 - LS is More – Peak Gallery, Toronto, Ontario
2004 - New Stance –Nocochi, Montreal, Quebec
2004 - Scaling –Le2, Montreal, Quebec
2001 - Critical Distance –Bourget Gallery, Montreal, Quebec
1997 - Sedimental Shifts –Marion Nicoll Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1997 - Stratagem – CJSW Radio, Calgary, Alberta
1996 - Sedimental Traces –Alberta College of Art & Design, Calgary

Group Exhibitions:
2008 - Art on the Block - Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton
2007 - Revived Object – University of Calgary + Creative Kids Museum
2007 - Alberta Biennial: Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton
2006 - University of Calgary Faculty of Fine Arts Faculty Exhibition
2006 - About Time: Contemporary Painting in Calgary, Nickle Arts Museum, Calgary, Alberta
2005 - Repentant Exposure – Group Exhibition – Paul Kuhn Gallery, Calgary
2004 - There and Now Silent Art Auction, Calgary
2004 - RBC/Canadian Art Foundation Painting Competition Group Touring Exhibition
Edmonton Art Gallery, Edmonton, Alberta
New Brunswick Museum of Art, Saint John, New Brunswick
McMaster Art Gallery, Hamilton, Ontario
Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto, Ontario
2004 - ARTview 2004 Auction, Carnegie Institution, Washington, DC
2004 - Paper Polyhedra – Two person exhibition – Vanier Library, Montreal, Quebec
2003 - Homecoming – VAV Gallery, Montreal, Quebec
2003 - Sacred Heart – Musee d’art Contemporaine, Montreal, Quebec
2002 - Collective Visions – Visual Arts Centre, Westmount, Quebec
2002 - Alumni Exhibition – Alberta College of Art & Design, Calgary, Alberta Baltic Watercolors – Laval University, Laval, Quebec
2001 - Bravo – Concordia MFA Group Exhibition, Montreal, Quebec
2001 - Vanier Faculty Show – Vanier College, St. Laurent, Quebec
2000 - Paint-or-die – Ste Catherine, Montreal, Quebec
2000 - Sur la Ligne/On the Line – UQAM Centre de Diffusion, Montreal, Quebec
2000 - MFA Painters – Concordia VAV Gallery, Montreal, Quebec
2000 - Faire la Rue – Mount Royal Summer Exhibition – Montreal, Quebec
1999 - Painting Insides – Two person exhibition – Stride Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1999 - Wide Open – Concordia VAV Gallery, Montreal, Quebec
1999 - MFA Open House – Bourget Building, Montreal, Quebec
1999 - Artists Trading Card Sessions – Calgary, Montreal, Poland
1998 - Picture Windows: New Abstract Painting, Artweek, Calgary, Alberta
1998 - Poland Travel Study Exhibition – Alberta College of Art & Design, Calgary
1998 - Senior Painting Exhibition – Alberta College of Art & Design, Calgary

Grants and Awards:
2007 - Travel Grant, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec.
2004 - Travel Grant, The Canada Council for the Arts.
2000 - Artistic Practice Grant, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec.
1999 - Creation/Production Grant, The Canada Council for the Arts
1998 - Creation/Production Grant, The Canada Council for the Arts
1998 - Travel Grant The Canada Council for the Arts
1997 - Artistic Practice Grant, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec.
1996 - Artistic Practice Grant, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec.
1994 - Artistic Practice Grant, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec
1993 - Artistic Practice Grant, Ministère de la Culture du Québec.

Public Collections:
Alberta Foundation for the Arts
Royal Bank Investments/Canadian Art Foundation, Toronto, Ontario
Contemporary Arts Museum, Visby, Gotland, Sweden
Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta

Publications/Reviews:
One of 12 featured artists in RBC Canadian Art Foundation 2008 Calendar
Profiled artist in RBC Canadian Art Foundation Contemporary Painters
Ornaminimalism, Exhibition Catalogue, 2007
Globe & Mail, December 2007, Laurel Smith at Peak Gallery by Gary Michael Dault
Utopia + Disaster: Alberta Biennial Exhibition Catalogue, 2007
Avenue Magazine, October 2007
Calgary Herald, February 2006, Celebrating Paint by Jennifer McVeigh
Globe & Mail, February 2006, LS is More by Gary Michael Dault
Mass Art Guide, Feb. 2006, The Less and More of Laurel Smith by Monika Burman
Canadian Art Magazine, Winter issue 2005
RBC Investments Press Releases, Fall 2004
The Link, 2003
Concordia Alumni Magazine, 2003
Watercolor Magazine, 2001
Snapshot CD Rom Catalogue, 2000
Paint-or-Die, Exhibition Catalogue, 2000
Painting Insides, Stride Gallery Publication, 1999
Fast Forward Magazine, 1999
The Link, 1999
Picture Windows: New Abstract Painting, Exhibition Catalogue, 1998

Teaching:
2006-present   University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta
2002-2004       Champlain College, St. Lambert, Quebec
2000-2001       Concordia Fine Arts, Montreal, Quebec
2001                Vanier College, St. Laurent, Quebec

Lectures & Residencies:
2006 - Nickel Arts Museum, Calgary, Alberta
2003 - Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec
2002 - Visual Arts Centre, Westmount, Quebec
2001 - Laval University, Laval, Quebec
2000 & 2001 - Hunter College, State University of New York, NY
2000 - Brucebo Foundation, Gotland, Sweden
1998 - London Travel Study Pilot Programme
1998 - Poland Travel Study Programme

Education:
In progress: PhD Education, University Calgary,
2001 - Master of Fine Arts (Studio Arts), Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec
Bachelor of Fine Arts with Distinction, Alberta College of Art & Design, Calgary

Awards:


"The glee of little kings" Oil on Canvas 36" x 96" CDN$4,800 Unframed	"Monarchy of the minimal" Oil on Canvas 36" x 96" Sold

"Après nous le déluge" Oil on Canvas 48" x 144" CDN$5,600 Unframed