Rita Smith

 In 1974 I went to Camberwell Shool of Art, where traditional methods and values were still paramount.

Even though I became an abstract painter for many years the Camberwell influence was the structure behind all my subsequent work. I achieved a First Class Honours Degree, and then undertook Postgraduate Study at The Slade School of Fine Art, followed by a Boise Scholarship Award to travel in America. 

After graduating I combined my painting career with part-time lecturing, which included teaching at Camberwell and Falmouth Colleges of Art.

I had been painting and exhibiting mainly abstract work based on city architecture and structure since student days, but my move to Cornwall from London in 1989 brought about a profound change. Without the inspiration of the city environment I began to return to working from observation, mainly painting interiors and still life. It was with a large watercolour of the interior of my studio that I won the Guinness Award for the best first time exhibitor at the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy in 1993.

I continued to work in this way until, in 2006, I moved to Plymouth. Again a move brought about further change in my work. My inspiration turned towards paintings exploring travel and city environments, and this resulted in a series of paintings of Venice, shown at the Artmill Gallery in Plymouth.

I have exhibited throughout my career in London, Plymouth, Exeter and around the country, both in mixed and one person shows. I regularly show my work at the Artmill Gallery in Plymouth, and I am a founder member of the Drawn to the Valley group of artists, and a member of the 21 Group.  

Silverlight: Rita Smith: Silverlight: Rita Smith

It was through the paintings of Venice that I was invited to paint at Weir Quay Boatyard. From my first visit I was excited by the rhythms, patterns and shapes of the boats out of water, the masts against the sky and the colours of the river. I love the textures of ropes and chains against the elegantly curved lines of the boats, and the way the rigging draws abstract shapes against the softly curving hills behind. 

The Tamar is endlessly fascinating and challenging to paint, and the paintings I have been working on for this exhibition are a new and exciting departure for me. They include watercolours which explore the rich colour of the boatyard, and paintings in oil and pastel of the river which focus on the silver light and rather abstract images of water and reed beds.

Weir Quay Boatyard: Rita Smith: Weir Quay Boatyard: Rita Smith

Mooring lines: Rita Smith: Mooring lines: Rita Smith