Artist Biography - Joe Smith

Canadian watercolour artist Joe Smith received his art education from the Montreal Museum of Fine Art. He began his art career as a staff artist at The Gazette in Montreal illustrating for both the news and advertising departments. In addition to his regular job he also worked as a commercial artist working for a variety of companies and printers.

From Montreal, he moved to Toronto where he was promoted to the National Office of the Southam Newspapers. There he worked as creative director which also involved the creation and development of audio visuals as well as traveling the country giving creative seminars and workshops.

Continuing his climb up the corporate ladder his next stop was at The Spectator in Hamilton, Ontario.  As the senior executive in charge of public relations, promotion and marketing he was the "front man" going out into the community, representing the newspaper at special events and as Joe puts it "Eating my way through hundreds of rubber chicken dinners."

In 1996 after suffering a heart attack he decided that he would get back to his roots as a fine artist. "It was something that was always in the back of my mind to get back to my art when I retired. After the heart attack at the age of 46, I decided life could be too short and I was not going to wait. So I packed it in with the newspaper, dusted off my paints and palettes and started over again as a full time fine artist."

While life and business was good and Joe became one of Oakville Ontario's better known artists, in 2002 he and his wife decided to move to Vancouver Island. "We came out for a visit and like many transplants fell in love with the scenery and the lifestyle and decided to stay."

Over the years he has participated in many juried shows, won some awards and is actively involved in the community. Shows that he has participated in range from the giant Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition to the Kawartha Art Festival to more recently shows on Vancouver Island such as Comox Nautical days and The Originals Only Fine Art Show.

In addition to group shows, he has also held solo shows in both private and commercial galleries. One of the advantages of moving to the Island was the ability to build his own studio and gallery which is of course open to the public.  Visitors just have to call ahead to make sure he is there and not out painting somewhere.

His paintings can be found in both private and corporate collections in Canada and abroad.

Affiliations
Board Member Comox Valley  Chamber of Commerce
Member Comox Valley Art  Gallery
Member Comox Valley Arts Council
Member Federation of Canadian Artists