Anj Smith in-conversation with William Feaver

'Rhinoceros' 
Anj Smith, 2016, Oil on linen , 38.3 x 30.4 cm
© Anj Smith / Photo: Alex Delfanne
Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth

Anj Smith collapses traditional definitions of portraiture, landscape and still life, allowing elements of each to coexist simultaneously. When researching her paintings, Smith draws on a diverse range of sources. Psychological states, nature, fashion subcultures and the history of painting are just a few of the layered references operating within her works. Smith writes: ‘Difficulties in identifying and separating out phenomena aren’t artificially simplified but embraced in all their complexities. Thresholds are hard to determine; clouds in the sky are indistinguishable from the scum washed up with the surf’.

Born in 1978 in Kent, England, Anj Smith studied at Slade School of Fine Art and at Goldsmiths College in London. Smith is represented by Hauser & Wirth and her work has been exhibited at the Bluecoat, Liverpool; Knoxville Museum of Art, Knoxville TN; the Hudson Valley Centre for Contemporary Art, Peekskill NY; La Maison Rouge, Paris; and me Collector’s Room, Berlin, among other museums and galleries in Europe and the United States.