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Born 22 October 1982 (age 38 years), Pretoria, South Africa Similar Nandipha Mntambo, Mary Sibande, Pamela Stretton Profiles | ||
Lionel Smit (born 22 October 1982, Pretoria, South Africa) is a South African artist, known for his contemporary portraiture executed through large canvases and sculptures.
Contents
- Lionel smit at the didrichsen art museum
- History
- Work and Subject Matter
- Local acclaim
- Qualifications and Awards
- Selected Exhibitions
- Catalogues
- Selected Collections
- References
Smit lives and works in Cape Town, South Africa, but is also represented internationally in London. His work has been exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery in London where it received the Viewer’s Choice Award, as well as selected as the 'face' of the BP Portrait Award 2013 for all campaigns. He received a Ministerial Award from the South African Department of Culture in 2013 for Visual Art. One of his paintings was pictured on the cover of Christie’s Auction Catalogue.
He has had solo exhibitions and been selected as a featured artist in several art fairs across Amsterdam, Germany, India, Miami, Monaco, London and Hong Kong, and has established a substantial international following with collectors ranging from the Standard Chartered Bank to Laurence Graff Art Collection at Graff Delaire Wine Estate.
Lionel smit at the didrichsen art museum
History
Born in 1982 in Pretoria, South Africa, Smit was exposed to sculpture through his father, sculptor Anton Smit, who worked from his studio adjacent to the family home. This studio played a central role in Lionel’s upbringing. By age twelve, Smit was already working in clay and considered himself primarily as a sculptor. At sixteen his parents separated, after which Lionel, a student at Pretoria’s Pro Arte School of Arts at the time, began to use the empty studio space his father occupied for painting. He went on to graduate as the Best Painting Student in his class.
Work and Subject Matter
Lionel Smit’s art is defined by a relationship between sculpture and painting. His paintings start with abstract lines and colour that establish a base for the subsequently overlaid image of a face or bust – in most cases posed by anonymous models from the Cape Malay community.
Smit’s bronzes are created using the lost-wax casting method. Patinas commonly available to artists working in bronze include natural browns, blacks and greens. However, Smit uses alternative methods that result in a saturated patina onto the bronze.
Smit is based in Strand, Cape Town. He has achieved international success including sell-out exhibitions in London and Hong Kong.
Local acclaim
Lionel Smit has also enjoyed success in his home country of South Africa, where his work has featured in local publications such as Elle South Africa and Elle Decoration. He has been interviewed on the television show Top Billing and his work is featured in the homes of many guests on the show.Lionel Smit's artwork is also used on the set of the talk show, Afternoon Express.
Qualifications and Awards
Selected Exhibitions
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009