Blu Smith: Shifting Lights

As a young man Blu worked as a sign painter and commercial artist, developing his skills for accuracy and precision. These are the very attributes that he found restricting in his painting. His mature style as an abstract painter began as an exercise to free himself from the technical restraints of realism. Non representational abstract became a creatively freeing direction that evolved into his unique voice as an artist. “I look at my paintings not as individual pieces but rather as a living, breathing and constantly evolving body of work. It really does take on a life of its own.”.  His subject matter is based from organic shapes with strong ties to nature. The organic structures are balanced with cavernous spaces and are filled with light that glow with an atmospheric quality. Typically, he begins with broad washes and textures, then pulls out and develops 3 dimensional shapes within the structures, finally resolving the surface with incisive drawing. The results are glowing organic abstractions. “My work is about the diversity of two different states and the transitions between the two. The real interest lies in bridging the gap between structure and space, foreground and background.”  Victoria, on the west coast of Canada, is where Blu lives and works with his wife and growing young family. Blu has exhibited his work throughout Canada, Europe and the U.S. for several years.