Sian Smith
Since graduating, Sian has completed work for a variety of national and international exhibitions, commissions and film projects
Sian earned a BA(Hons) in Fine Art from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design in 2014 and an MFA at the New York Academy of Art in 2018. Sian worked as assistant to director Lynne Ramsay, and was commissioned to complete a series of paintings for the latest Wes Anderson production ‘The French Dispatch.’ She credits her experiences with film in forming her artistic practice: the effect of light on objects, the importance of small details in telling a story, the ability to subtly create a mood in a space.
In 2017, rather than using stretched canvas, Sian began painting on unstretched and unprimed chiffon upon which she explores a range of themes; from the figure to landscape. Throughout all, light remains her primary subject. By painting only the light of the images and leaving the shadows untouched, the paintings appear as if inside the fabric rather than on top of it. She prefers to leave the paintings unstretched and loosely hung. Sian chooses this presentation so they are free to drift with the air adding to their dramatic reference.
