QUEENSTOWN
GALLERY
OF FINE ART
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Richard Smith was born in Tauranga in 1955. Although he has no formal art training, he has been committed to painting since his teenage years. Even before then, he had spent many hours in his father’s boat-building workshop, observing and drawing boats under construction, developing the accomplished formal skills and techniques now so evident in his work. He has been influenced by American artist Edward Hooper and by a number of New Zealand painters including, Peter McIntyre. The solid compositional and drawing abilities and unerring sense of perspective that are demonstrated in their work is also a strong feature in Richard’s. Throughout his working life, which was spent predominantly in the marine and furniture manufacturing industries, Richard sustained his passion for art. It became his primary focus in 2001 when he made the decision to paint full-time. Since then, he has participated in numerous group and solo exhibitions. Richard’s versatility leads him to depict landscape, the marine environment of wharfs and vessels, and buildings of character. It was from his years spent in the marine environment, both through work and sporting activities, that Richard gleaned his knowledge of boats and of the mercurial nature and characteristics of water. He is able to capture the distinctive ‘personalities’ of different boats and the elusive, reflective quality of the water around them. ‘I want water to look fluid and wet, as if you could dip your hand in … or an old post so solid and textured that you want to reach out and touch it. An elusive goal but one I’m always aiming for’ he says. Richard is always seeking inspiration for his painting when he travels to different parts of the country. While he used to paint on location, however, he finds this takes too long and now prefers to work from sketches and photographs in his studio. His keen eye for the beauty of natural elements observed ‘en plein air’ is reflected in his paintings. He describes his style as ‘contemporary realism, executed with a strong depth of space and colour, form and contrast’. Although his art appears detailed, it is not the detail that interests him; he prefers to simplify rather than beautify and make more picturesque. His inclusion of manmade elements to signify human presence in the landscape, and his use of licence only for the sake of composition, lend to his work the integrity that comes from honest depiction. His aim, he says, is to create paintings that look spontaneous and yet convey a sense of life so that people become more observant of what’s around them. ‘My art covers many aspects of our land and lifestyle. I hope people find inspiration in my paintings, and are motivated to take a fresh look at our environment.’
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