“Born in the Netherlands, raised in Australia, and educated in New York City, the diverse backstory of Kaili Smith parallels the diversity of the work he makes. He first entered the VantagePoint radar a few years ago when his large narrative paintings of urban youth began popping up all over social media. The work had a strength and confidence about it and brilliantly straddled the space between contemporary and classical painting. Upon further investigation however, one quickly realizes that painting is just one aspect of this multifaceted and accomplished artist. At the ripe age of just 25 he has experience in writing and directing films, installation art, oil painting, performance art, graffiti, photography, acting, and documentary films. The future is bright for Mr. Smith and it was a pleasure to sit down with him for a transcontinental interview coinciding with the opening of his current solo show “A Utopia Where The Problems Art Not Fixed” at Thinkspace Gallery in LA.” – Episode 120
Thank you to Juxtapoz for featuring Kaili Smith on their website for his exhibition, ‘A Utopia Where Problems Are Not Fixed,’ which is now on view through November 7th at our space in Culver City.
What is fascinating about this young artist’s works are the stories of youth culture and how Smith balances an almost Baroque style to contemporary urban settings.
Exhibitions can be viewed in person each Saturday during the duration of the shows by scheduled appointment. Please visit our website for additional details and to book your appointment. Masks are required at all times, no exceptions.
Exhibitions can be viewed in person each Saturday during the duration of the shows by scheduled appointment. Please visit our website for additional details and to book your appointment. Masks are required at all times, no exceptions.
Inspiration behind the exhibition: After reflecting on my last body of work from my show with Thinkspace in 2018, I had several points of changes I wanted for this show. The first was to move away from the “Le Petit Prince” reference in my paintings. Secondly, to include backgrounds that placed the context and environment of the figures, and lastly, work more on narrative in my paintings. I spent a long time working on a mind map drawn on to my studio wall. The mind map was made out of keywords that branched into sentences, rough painting sketches, photos from my childhood etc. This ended up with three themes that the works would center around: Violence/Vulnerability, Crime/Prize, and Companionship/Lotgenoot. The title of the show came up through the mind mapping process and is the perfect contradiction that in so many ways captures the world I’m trying to create in the paintings, as well as the environment and memories the works are inspired by.
Inspiration behind the exhibition: The main focus of my body of work for the last years has been the graffiti scene. Graffiti shaped my life and I keep evoking its elements in my work while paying a constant tribute to all the graff writers out there. I have huge respect for this scene and consider this way of life inspiring besides all the negativity associated with it. Even though graffiti can be visually aggressive, dirty, and disturbing to a lot of people I consider it carries many values humanity should be aware of and look up to. Values like brotherhood, teamwork, dedication, loyalty, passion, equality, amongst others, while having fun and living the moment pumped by adrenaline – to FEEL ALIVE! Graffiti only disturbs people who don’t like it, It doesn’t hurt anyone. The only “downside” I see to it is the fact that if you don’t like it and you wish to clean it up, you will need to spend money to do so and sometimes people are trapped in a position where they have to pay for it even if they don’t want to or can’t afford to – for example if you live in a condo and all of a sudden you have a massive condo bill to pay for maintenance of the building. That’s why I always avoided painting in private spots. But hey nothing is perfect in life!
Inspiration behind the exhibition: For the last couple of years, I have worked with light in my composition. The bees are like a kind of spot and they create some spectacular lights which are often colored. For this mini solo show, I wanted to create some works only with this same colored light. Also, I think the red is an interesting color choice because it creates something energetic and cozy too.
Also for me, it’s another highlight to show and make the focus on my bees. They are always the smallest part of my work but currently the most important because they give all the flow and the atmosphere.
The exhibition will be on view from October 17 through November 7.
We plan to have visitation for the show each Saturday, including opening day from noon to 6 pm. We will post a scheduling platform link on our website this coming week.
