Original artist displaying work at The Harris - Preston over a four month period

To be a successful artist you need at least two things. One - a unique name for yourself. 2 - an original way of portraying your art. 

 

Local artist Bob and Roberta Smith gave himself the pseudonym whilst he was living and working with his sister, Roberta. He is also an accomplished:-

Following his time at Art College he then went to New York to train as a sign painter. This gave him the inspiration to use text as an art form which sees him create colourful slogans on banners and placards using sign writers’ paint. 

 

His most recent work is an art installation entitled ‘Look Listen Make Things’. Bob created  a huge brightly coloured banner with an image of a hand painted sign designed to ask people how we act and behave in relation to the world we live in. 

 

Now The Harris Museum and Art Gallery in Preston is exhibiting his work which will cover the front of the Grade 1 listed building from June 4th - October 2nd this year. The established art venue will also present a solo exhibition by the artist across it’s three special exhibition galleries. 

 

Bob speaks of his joy at being chosen to display his art at The Harris, 

 

“It’s very exciting to see my work brought together in a major museum in the UK for the first time. It’s almost unimaginably mind boggling to think we have made an art work so large it engulfs the museum it was made for. It’s a kind of Christo but with lettering. Museums have been closed for a long time now, I hope ‘Look Listen Make Things’ is part of re-establishing art as a focal point not just for conversation but as a call for action to everyone. We are all creative, art is our human right”.

 

A series of some of Bob’s most well known works will also  be shown including the following:-

The exhibition will include several new pieces including a series of fabric banners made by Elizabeth Cake with key texts from Smith and it will be a debut showing of all his sculptures of major figures in art education displayed together. 

 

Councillor Peter Kelly, Cabinet member for Culture and Leisure at Preston City Council concludes with these positive words in response to the original artist, 

 

“Look, Listen, Make Things’ is a sentiment close to the hearts of the people of Preston with its history of innovation in manufacturing and making and something for us all to reflect upon as the Harris museum fully reopens”. 

 

^Alex Ashworth CCG Art Blogger