SOLD. Photograph by Whitney Lewis-Smith 2014
SOLD.
Whitney Lewis-Smith, Authentic Photograph, Untitled 2014 / ‘A Garden of Natural Facinations’ Series. Print measures 15 x 18 inches / Image measures 11 x 13.5 inches. Signed & dated in graphite pencil at bottom of print on white border. Artist Proof.
Privata Collection, Vancouver, Canada.
Print was donated at a fundraiser at La Petite Mort Gallery, & purchased by myself. Proceeds of sale to create further fundraising projects for the local community in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Born in Ottawa, Canada, Mexico City-based artist Whitney Lewis-Smith works primarily with 8×10 glass plate negatives to document her elaborate set constructions. Having previously spent time in scientific fieldwork, her staged scenes are created with a wealth of history and cultural chronicles amassed while in the field with research teams, from local healers, and storytellers to sources from the Museum of Natural History in Mexico.
Currently, Lewis-Smith is undertaking a 6-month artist residency to produce a sight specific installation at Nimmo Bay Resort. The resort is a family owned and operated lodge in the Great Bear Rainforest of British Columbia, Canada that supports the purposeful evolution of tourism.
Collectors include: Global Affairs Canada, The Honourable Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s collection, SUMMA Art Fair Madrid, the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Maison Simon’s collection, and the Ottawa City’s Public Art collection. Lewis-Smith studied Studio Arts at Concordia University focusing in drawing and sculpture.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Whitney Lewis-Smith is a photo-based artist who works primarily with 8×10 glass plate negatives and elaborate set building. She is currently examining Biophilia, a term coined by renowned psychologist Erich Fromm describing how humans possess an innate tendency to seek connection with nature and other forms of life. As of 2008 The United Nations says more than half of the world lives in cities and the average pre-teen recognizes more video game characters than common wildlife. With today’s accelerating technological advancements Lewis-Smith has become preoccupied with the evolution of humanity’s relationship with the natural world. During a production residency at The Museum of Natural History in Puebla, Mexico she worked with specimens that became a catalyst for her recent series discussing consumerism and the environment. Drawing from the “impossible bouquet” originating in dutch golden era painting Whitney uses the photograph to document what can now be amassed in the flesh, by internet purchase or otherwise, highlighting how globalization impacts the way we interact with the world around us. By depicting scenes that will again become an impossibility Lewis-Smith asks the viewer to recognize our current time as a passing moment.
Education
2011 Diploma, Photography, The School of Photographic Arts, Ottawa
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2021 From Here at the Threshold, Kostuik Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2019 Underbrush, Permanent Large Scale Installation for COMMON GIRL, Ottawa, ON
2018 The Impossible, St. Laurent + Hill Gallery, Ottawa ON
2018 ONTOGENY, The SPAO Centre Gallery, Ottawa ON
2018 Heloigravure, Zopilote Inc., Mexico City, Mexico
2017 TRANSFIX, St. Laurent + Hill Gallery, Ottawa ON
2014 Natural Fascinations, La Petite Mort Gallery, Ottawa ON
2011 The Amarantos, La Petite Mort Gallery, Ottawa ON
Group Exhibitions
2021 Roq La Rue Gallery, Seattle, WA
2021 The Anatomoy of Oddity Studio Series Group Exhibition, Mexico City, Mexico
2021 Clavo Movimento for CDMX Art Week, Casa Versalles Cultureal Centre, Mexico City, Mexico
2021 Botanicus Group Show, Roq La Rue Gallery, Seattle, WA
2020 A New Light: Canadian Women ArtistsPresented by The Embassy of Canada in Partnership with Canada
Council for the Arts, Embassy of Canada, Washington, DC
2020 Exposicion Colectiva de Los Residenes de Cobertizo, Jilotepec, Mexico
2020 Casa Pixan for CDMX Art Week, Mexico City, Mexico
2019 TERRAMATTER, City Hall art Gallery, Ottawa ON
2019 Plastico Arqueologico, Circulo Cubano de Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
2019 Light and Dark Drives, El Consultorio, Mexico City, Mexico
2018 VESSEL: On Gender, General Assembly Collaborative Production Space, Ottawa ON
2017 Contact Photo Festival, Arta Gallery, Toronto ON
2014 Part Stradivarius/Part Scalpel, School of Photographic Arts, Ottawa ON
2014 The Black and White Show, Cube Gallery, Ottawa ON
2014 Developpe (third Edition),National Arts Centre, Ottawa ON
2014 Emerging Artists in Public Collections, Wall Space Gallery, Ottawa ON
2014 The Infidels, La Trampa Grafica, Mexico City, Mexico
2013 Post Mortem, La Perrera Arte, Santiago, Chile
2013 The Art Zoo, Nuit Blanche, Ottawa ON
2013 Systems of Identity, Studio 66, Ottawa ON
2013 The Three Show, Exposure Gallery, Ottawa ON
2012 Developpe, National Arts Centre, Ottawa ON
Art Fairs
2021 Este Arte Fair, Uruguay, Virtual
2020 Context, Art Miami, Virtual
2019 Expo Pixan, Bucareli 69, Mexico City, Mexico
2016 Summa Contemporary International Art Fair, Madrid, Spain
Awards/Residencies
2021 Nimmo Bay Lodge, Great Bear Rainforest, Artist Residency
2020 Cobertizo International Resident by Invitation, Jilotepex, Mexico
2019 Production Residency in Colour Heliogravure, Zopilote Inc., Mexico City, Mexico
2019 Inaugural Commissions Program Selectee, The Ottawa Art Gallery, Ottawa, ON
2018 Ontario Arts Council Production Grant, Biophilia
2018 The Royal Bank of Canada’s Emerging Artist Award, Finalist
2018 Ottawa Art Gallery and SAW Gallery Production Grant
2018 Mexico City Arts Residency
2014 The Arquetopia Foundation for the Artist Residency
2013 Canadian National Magazine Awards Norminee in Portrait Photography Category
2010 Embassy of France’s Concourse Visa pour l’image: Perpignan, Finalist