Born in 1919 in East Brighton, England, Gordon Smith has worked continuously to expand the dialogue between abstraction and representation. Smith emigrated to Canada in 1933, where he attended the Winnipeg School of Art. Upon his return from fighting in WWII, he settled with his wife, Marion, in Vancouver, and graduated from the Vancouver School of Art.
His many major achievements include the creation of the Gordon and Marion Smith Foundation (2002), Order of Canada (1996), Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Visual Arts (2007), Mayor’s Arts Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Art (2016), and the Governor General’s Award in the Visual and Media Arts (2009). Smith’s work is included in numerous public collections, including the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa; Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Victoria and Albert Museum, London; and the Vancouver Art Gallery. His work is also featured at the High Commission of Canada (Canada House) at Trafalgar Square in London, UK. A 340-page monograph on the artist was published by Black Dog Publishing in 2014.
Gordon Smith lives and works in West Vancouver, British Columbia.
