Laura Smith (b. 1980)

               Laura Smith is a London-based painter renowned for her evocative still life works that transform everyday objects into emotionally resonant compositions. Her paintings are celebrated for their theatricality, anthropomorphic qualities, and the subtle narratives they convey through the arrangement and interaction of objects.

Smith studied Painting at the Slade School of Fine Art (2003) and drawing at the Royal Drawing School (formerly The Prince’s Drawing School, 2004). She then went on to complete her MFA in Painting, again at the Slade School of Fine Art in 2012. During her studies she distinguished herself as a highly promising artist. She received the Richard Ford Award and the Clare Winsten Memorial Award and was shortlisted for the Threadneedle Prize in both 2011 and 2016.

Smith's work is deeply rooted in the tradition of still life painting, where she explores the emotional potential of ordinary objects. She often imbues these items with anthropomorphic qualities, allowing them to interact in ways that suggest narratives and evoke feelings. Her studio practice involves working directly from carefully arranged still life setups, sometimes within a controlled environment to manage lighting. She frequently creates series of paintings from overlapping sections of a large arrangement, viewed from differing perspectives, aiming to achieve dynamic and intense compositions. She works primarily in oil and uses the medium to its full potential with saturated colour values and florid impasto brushwork that suggests a confident ease with her craft.

Smith's work has been exhibited widely, including at prestigious venues such as the Royal Academy of Arts, London, Mall Galleries, London, Flowers Gallery, London and New York, Browse & Darby, London, Piano Nobile, London, Crean & ompany, London and 155A Gallery, London. She was elected as a member of the New English Art Club (NEAC) in 2022, a testament to her standing in the contemporary art community.  Beyond her studio work, Smith is also a teacher at the Heatherley School of Fine Art in London and has led workshops at institutions such as the National Portrait Gallery, where she encourages students to draw from paintings to deepen their understanding of art.