PARTISAN

“Partisan” is a series of paintings focusing on polarization of American society. They are a personal exercise in piecing together the current moment. Through seven differing oil painting techniques and titles taking reference from cultural narratives, linguistic turns-of-phrase and psychological habits, these paintings embrace the complexity of personal histories, and signify polarized national consciousness through a restricted blue and red palette. 

The events of 2020 and 2021 have crystallized the extreme degree of polarization in both The United States and many parts of Western Europe – the process of which has been multilayered and complex. Layering different painting methods in these “Partisan” portraits brings into greater focus the psychological schizm inherent in current American perceptions of reality. Seven painting techniques create a metaphor for the multilayered nature of  personal history, as Smith draws upon own experience of perceived racial ambiguity, recognizing the ideology of race as a fundamental to American society.

The techniques involved in these paintings begin with preparatory drawings sketched in charcoal using film stills for reference material, as a nod to contemporary American mythos. The drawing is then scanned, printed as a negative, and exposed onto a photosensitive silkscreen which provides an integral tool for creating the overall layered effect. An intentionally blurred portrait forms the base layer of the painting. The silkscreen is applied over the blurred image, creating a tension between the layers: one soft, one hard-edged. Parts of the portrait are reworked “realistically”, as needed, to emphasize an inferred psychology in the subject. Palette knifing is applied throughout the process, building atmosphere within the composition.