Brian Smyth (born 1967)[1] is an Irish painter known for his figurative work.[2]
Brian Smyth was born in Cork. He studied art at the Crawford College of Art and Design in Cork, where he specialised in painting, and graduated with an honours degree in art and design in 1995.[1] Subsidiary subjects included print, video and photography.[1]
In January 2000, Smyth exhibited at Lavit gallery with Tom Climent and Martin Finnin in a "smart and trendy" show.[3] Jo Allen in Circa said Smyth's work of "tastefully hued paintings of photographs of a pretty woman resting were slick and pleasing to the eye. But they seemed to have little to say beyond their cool, ironic stance."[3]
Mark Ewart in The Irish Times said the work of each of the three exhibiting artists was "quite distinctive", Smyth's colours being toned down to the point where they approached monochrome, and that his work, like Climent's, was nostalgic: "The paintings of the reclining female figures are particularly atmospheric, the features seeming to melt into an understated, yet fluidly painted background."[4]
His first solo show took place in November 2001 at the Blue Leaf Gallery, Fairview, of around 25 oil paintings, mostly portraits, using film scenes, his girlfriend, and portraits by artists such as Titian, Klimt and Rembrandt as source material.[5] A concern with tone, light and character created a postmodern style, which he saw as "timeless".[5]
In 2008 at the Lavit Gallery, Smyth curated Brian Smyth Selects, and chose five artists who, like him, work in representational painting. The artists were Patrick Cashin, Mary Clancy, Philip Lindey, Stephen Murphy, and Jennifer O’Connor.[6][7]
Smyth's work has been exhibited in Ireland (Lavit Gallery and Buckley Fine Art, Cork, and the Oisin gallery, Dublin), the UK (Red Rag Gallery in Stow on the Wold),[1] and abroad (New York, Chicago and Switzerland).[8]