Tracey Morgan Gallery is pleased to present Spheric, an exhibition of paintings by artist Ralston Fox Smith. This is Smith’s second exhibition with the gallery, and is presented in conjunction with a solo exhibition by Ben Nixon.
These new oil on canvas paintings are an exercise in geometry and perspective. Long enamored with lines and rectangular shapes, Smith has recently begun incorporating spheres in his work, adding further opportunities for visual play and challenges in spatial awareness. Layering and shading evoke a sense of movement, and the deceptively simple renderings continue to reveal new elements, if given time to do so.
Each sphere occupies its minimalist composition with integrity and prominence, whether contained, afloat, or in arrested motion. This elemental connection becomes more profound through color and placement, encouraging the inanimate sphere(s) to gain sentience. Monochromatic transparency solidifies this transformation by defining a duality of exposed and obscured, resulting in more intimate settings that travel between public and private.
Smith’s work maintains a dialog with the rich history of geometric abstractionist and hard edge painters, while asserting a vision uniquely his. By distilling the chaos of an undulating world into ordered shapes, precise lines, and soothing colors, he offers a welcome respite void of complacency - instead there is an electric pulse that charges the work; we are at once calmed, invigorated, grounded, and elated.
Ralston Fox Smith grew up in New Hampshire and attended Amherst College where he earned his BFA. He later studied under the abstract artist Laddie John Dill at Santa Monica College of Design, Art and Architecture. Smith’s work is held in private and public collections nationally and internationally including Dana Farber Cancer Institute, MA and Mission Hospital, NC, among others. His work has been featured in both solo and thematic group exhibitions. He currently lives and works in Asheville, NC.