RAIR | 2026

Charlie smith

Charlie Smith (1988 Copenhagen DK) uses methodical woodworking to query structures of perception, experience, and value. He holds an MFA from Bard College and a BFA from Massachusetts College of Art. His work has been exhibited at artist-run spaces (Kill Shelter Presents, LA, Babayaga, Hudson NY), galleries (Et Al, San Francisco, Night Gallery, Los Angeles), and Museums (Dorsky Museum, New Paltz NY, WAAM, Woodstock NY). He is a 2026 Roswell Artist in Residence.

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“I spend considerable time in dusty workshops, but my process begins away from the studio. I deeply value persistent attentiveness, or the mode of active looking that artists learn by allowing our interests to lead us. I’m drawn to scenes of slow growth and accumulation that I may chance upon. As ivy grows through and around a barrier, I aim for the qualities of my work to feel embedded throughout a continuous, ongoing process of evolution.

I pursue form with overlapping methods of assembly and disassembly. Patterns, seams, and holes form a network of actions across the surface. Cross sections register multiple scales of looking as we move in relation to the object, synthesizing material and image into something both alien and familiar. My objective is to empower both self and viewer with healthy skepticism, without cutting off romantics. In this I see tools to navigate the speed and cynicism of the image economy.”

See more of Charlie Smith’s work here.