I grew up in rural New Hampshire in an eighteenth-century farmhouse with acres of woods, fields, creeks and ponds to explore. Within this magical setting and inspired by a family that included antiquarians, artists, teachers and preservationists, I cultivated a strong affinity for the natural world.

I received a B.F.A. from Amherst College with a concentration in printmaking. I continued my art studies in Los Angeles at the Santa Monica College of Design, Art and Architecture studying under Los Four artist Frank Romero, contemporary abstract artist Laddie John Dill, and Beat Generation assemblage artist George Herms. Dill also became my employer and patron of my work. Their Black Mountain-style teaching fueled my passion for oil painting and its direct expression of self and surroundings.

My first serious body of work emerged soon thereafter. Painted on a large scale with an economy of elements, this series of landscapes and their wide open spaces were my response to the city life of Los Angeles. After a successful show of this work, I moved to Asheville, North Carolina with my wife Robin.

foxsmith@charter.net
828.231.2984

The mountains of Western North Carolina profoundly influenced me, inspiring a bold new series of
paintings. A new color palette and strong contrasting light defines this group of both real and imagined
places. A growing admiration of Edward Hopper and Rockwell Kent’s work also influenced this austere
series. Now with two children at home, I paint in a mill building studio on the French Broad River. My
latest work expresses the comfort I find in the sensibility of nature through dialogs between natural
objects and their surreal surroundings. They are places where I voice my perspective while inviting
others to explore their own.

Throughout this creative journey photography has been an invaluable tool and pursuit. The immediate
capturing of seen and felt compositions forms a library of images that continually grows, supplying my
need for inspiration and insight. Nature, having greatly influenced my entire life, is the focal point of
both my photography and painting. Its health, and consequently ours, depends on our increased
stewardship and greater respect.

Thank you for visiting.