A brief glimpse into the life of local, famous multi-disciplinary artist, Lionel Smit
Our Year 9 to 12 Art & Design students and Year 12 English Literature students were terribly excited anticipating our imminent trip to Lionel Smit’s Studio. We were met with a flurry of activity as Lionel and staff were busy preparing and packing his latest works for an upcoming exhibition early in March at the Everard Read CIRCA gallery, in Cape Town.
Our guide, Donnay, Gallery and Logistics Manager, commenced the tour by visiting the upstairs printing area, where silkscreen and Giclée prints are created and briefly explained and illustrated various examples of the different printing techniques, as well as some etchings and chine-collé prints.
Next, was the painting section, where numerous artworks were stationed in different areas, some in the process – as Lionel works on several pieces at once, sometimes for several years in some cases. The area houses an interesting array of paint, drawing materials and various precious pieces from his earlier years, as well as a superb private collection of inspirational artworks he has acquired over the years, displayed in the passage area.
The cherry on the top was the sculpture section where Lionel was very busy working on a large semi-circular sculpture and he graciously shared his pressurised time to discuss his work, inspiration and processes, also taking the time to answer some technical questions the students had prepared whilst we helped roll small balls of a plasticine mix to add to his latest sculpture.
Lionel was introduced to the world of art by his father, renowned sculptor, Anton Smith, whose studio was adjacent to the family home. Lionel drew inspiration from the early classical artists, and the expressive colourful brush strokes of the Fauves, tending to favour the softer feminine aspect, or Madonna figure, also inspired by the many beautiful faces that make up the rich cultural Identity of our diverse country.
Gallery visits and art/design/craft interviews form an essential part of the Art & Design course. This inspiring visit catered for many aspects of the students areas of interest – painting, sculpture and printing – as well as architecture, especially the versatile and voluminous, church-like space of the studio and gallery designed by talented local architect Stuart Hermansen.
We are incredibly lucky to have a famous multi-disciplinary artist like Lionel Smit right in our very midst, and reasonably accessible. I trust and hope that the visit will inspire our students to even greater heights.
Our visit also served to inspire our accompanying Yr 12 English Literature students to write some art reviews.
Below are some of the comments made by the Art & Design students following their visit:
I enjoyed seeing Lionel Smit’s workshop and how he works in the different areas. I like the use of expressive and bold colours, instead of using “realistic” colours for his work. Ineke Yr 12
When I arrived I was excited to see art pieces I had seen from Lionel on the internet in person. I liked the pieces I saw because I was able to analyse them more thoroughly by being a few inches away from the artworks. I liked the texture on all of them and how the art size scales varied which made every piece unique.
The fact that it was my first art exhibition also added to my excitement of being there. Ben Yr 10
The visit to the Lionel Smit Gallery was a truly inspiring experience which reignited my flame for art and made me want to push myself and my style even further. Keenan Yr 12
The art gallery was an interesting and fun experience, it was also very inspiring. The way he does his paintings flow and they always come together with a colour palette that is similar, like yellow and brown. I want to be able to do a similar style like his. Milla Yr 11
It was very interesting to see his studio and where he works, especially the sculpture room. I fairly enjoyed being able to actually talk to him and see and hear about silk-screening and the prints done. Zoey Yr 11
The Lionel Smit Studio was a very eye opening experience. I got insight on the lives of artists on their many processes to produce their final artworks. The studio showed me that there are numerous things, methods and tools needed for some pieces of artwork. Every piece of art was as great or even greater than the next. His artwork definitely pushed me towards a new direction and even made me want to sculpt and create something more tangible. His colour and way of painting had made me question my own art and stimulate me to try something different. Sibo Yr 11
I really enjoyed going to the Lionel Smit art studio. It was amazing to see his sculptures in real life and learn about the process he uses to create these magnificent pieces of artwork. It was also exciting to meet Mr Smit in person. I was very inspired by his paintings and it makes me want to just sit down and start painting and there was a very interesting sculpture I recognised. This is the sculpture that I found very interesting. It is called the Morphous. This is where two heads are morphed together. I didn’t have the original picture of it when we went to the gallery. But I enjoy how the sculpture is connected together and they are both facing the other directions from each other. Arella Yr 10
The studio gave me an insight into Lionel Smit’s artistic passion. The opportunity to actually meet him inspired creativity inside of me. Lionel Smit’s statue structures reveal to us the message he is trying to pass on and the emotions he is trying to evoke in a viewer. I would describe the art as Lionel expressing/highlighting the beauty of his subjects. It’s extraordinary to me that he can capture a person’s significance. My first impression of seeing all his work was “wow, how can someone be so gifted” and I am grateful that he chose to share his gift with the world. Imitha Yr 10
I really liked that we could meet Lionel Smit and see his work area and you could sense how comfortable he is in his own space. I also really liked seeing all of his artwork and sculptures. Katherine Yr 9
The Lionel Smit exhibition was quite enlightening. I most enjoyed the outing; it was incredibly relaxing to be in an art-focused environment. Being able to see the finished pieces physically gave a much different experience compared to searching it up online. The scale at which Smit presented his artworks really added to the grandeur of his pieces. When observing him work, I could easily see how relaxed and comfortable he seemed, how much he enjoyed working. It was amazing to think that such a “chill” man had made such extraordinary art. Levi Yr 9
I am interested in architecture and I must say I really enjoyed Lionel Smit’s Studio. I was very inspired by Stuart Hermansen’s work with the design of the studio. I really admired the simplicity of it, because Stuart Hermansen left it as open concrete and the usage of sharp angles and edges.This also complimented Lionel’s work and made the colour seem more powerful with the contrast with the concrete. Lionel Smit’s artworks were also very spectacular. His ability to work with colour and his subject matter is also highly proficient. Jensen Yr 11
Mrs Lynda Leibbrandt, High School Art Teacher
