Smith

Smith (stylized as SMITH; born 1985) is a French transdisciplinary artist-researcher. Smith experiments with and explores the links between contemporary humanity and its boundary figures – ghosts, mutants, hybrids – engaging his own body and that of his collaborators – writers, astronauts, shamans, engineers, designers, performers or composers – in indisciplinary projects. Disturbing genres, languages and disciplines, Smith proposes curious works, in the etymological sense of cura: curiosity and care for the world around us, the terrestrial and the celestial, the human and the non-human, the visible and the invisible, imagination and fiction. Thermal cameras, drones, neon lights, implantations of electronic chips and subcutaneous meteorites, atomic mutations or trance practices characterise his fluid work composed with technological and spiritual means that incorporate the dimensions of mystery and dream.

Early life and education Born in 1985 in Paris, France. Smith has a degree in 2010 from the . Smith has engaged in collaborations with scientific and philosophical research teams and labs - such as the French National Centre for Scientific Research in 2012, and the IRAP (Institut de recherche en astrophysique et planétologie) in 2018.

In the interactive installation "Cellulairement" (2012), a thermal capture device in the installation space was connected to an electronic chip implanted in Smith's body, allowing Smith to feel the presence of viewers.

Many of Smith's early works explore questions of gender and personal identity. The idea of transition is a central element of his artistic practice. Along with French curator Nadège Piton, Smith wrote the book "Transgalactic" in 2020 about queer & trans presences in contemporary photography, and curated the eponymous exhibition presented in March 2023 at La Filature, Mulhouse.

His most recent projects are "Spectrographies" (2014), "TRAUM" (2015–18), "Saturnium" (2017) and "Desideration" (2019–2021). They were presented during cinema festivals in Europe, at the Centre Pompidou, and Théâtre de la Cité Internationale (Paris), at the CND (Pantin), at the Dance Museum (Rennes) and at the CCN-ICI (Montpellier).

Smith's visual works were exhibited as solo shows at the Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie (Arles), at the Filles du Calvaire gallery and Palais de Tokyo (Paris), at the Photographic Museum of Helsinki (Finland), as well as several countries in Europe (Sweden, Luxembourg, Germany, Spain, Italy, Austria, Switzerland), Asia (China, Cambodia, South Korea) and Latin America (Mexico, Chile, Uruguay).

Smith is represented by Christophe Gaillard gallery in Paris. He is currently an associate artist at La Filature - Scène Nationale in Mulhouse, and laureate of the 2023 Villa Albertine in partnership with the French writer Marie NDiaye.

Publications His first book, "Löyly" (Filigranes) was published in 2013, followed by "Saturnium" (Actes Sud) in 2017, a long-length interview by art historian Christine Ollier in 2017, "Juste entre nous" (André Frère), the opera booklet "Astroblème" (Filigranes), and the traval-photobook "Valparaiso" (André Frère). Dorothée Smith (préf. Arnaud Claass), Löyly & Sub Limis, Le Château d’Eau, 2011 Dorothée Smith et Dominique Baqué, Löyly, Filigranes, 2013 Smith, Antonin Tri Hoang, Jean-Philippe Uzan, Claire Moulène et Alain Fleischer, Saturnium - Conte musical et photographique, Musicales Actes Sud, 6 September 2017 Smith, Valparaiso (Si tu pleux), André Frère Editions, 2018 Smith & Christine Ollier, André Frère Éditions, 2017 Smith, Astroblème, Coffret "1+2 L'origine manquante", Filigranes, 2018 Smith, Désidération (prologue), Textuel, 2021 Smith, Desiderea Nuncia, Palais Books, 2021 Smith, Paris (Contralto), Palais Books, 2021 Smith, Dami, Filigraines, 2025

Solo exhibitions 2008–2009: galerie AnnexOne, galerie Dask, Copenhague 2009: Nuit Blanche, Chapelle de la maternité Sainte Croix, Metz, avec une performance de Sir Alice 2011–2015: Löyly, 4th festival Photo Phnom Penh, Institut Français du Cambodge (commissariat de Christian Caujolle ); , Brago, Portugal; Festival Photofolies, Rodez; The Finnish Museum of Photography, Helsinki, Finlande 2011: Sub Limis, galerie du Château d'eau de Toulouse, Toulouse 2012–2013: "Hear us marching up slowly", Rencontres d'Arles; Photospring Festival of Caochangdi, Chine (commissaire : Didier de Faÿs) 2015: Entre deux fantômes, Pavillon Vendôme, Clichy 2016: Давайте Мечтать, galerie les Filles du Calvaire, Paris 2017: TRAUM, Patricia Conde Galeria, Mexico, Mexique; Institut Chorégraphique International, Montpellier (commissaire : Christian Rizzo) 2018: Spectrographies, San José foto Festival, Uruguay 2021, "Désidération (Anamanda Sîn)", Rencontres d'Arles

Selected works 2009 Löyly, series of photographs 2010 Sub Limis, series of photographs 2012 Spectrographies, interactive installation 2015 TRAUM, transdisciplinary project (danse, cinema, sculpture, photography, performance) 2017 Saturnium, series of photographs & sound installation 2017-2021 Désidération, indisciplinary 2022-2025 Dami, indisciplinary