Aaron Smith
I began painting local scenery after I bought an art print by Zuane "Canaletto" who specialized in painting the canals of Venice. When observing his work and the work of my other influences such as Edward Hopper I have come to appreciate the authenticity of what they captured by being in their particular time and place. Cannaletto, for example may not have appreciated at the time the innocuous shutters, clotheslines and chimneys which were so unique to his era. Just as Hopper may not have necessarily meant to capture the simplicity and even boredom of his time and place by painting a man looking out of a hotel room or a woman looking at her fingers such as the case in Nighthawks. So my paintings of Spokane which by today's standards are commonplace, may well be a document to an ever changing fast paced era. In one painting for example a man holds a white takeout coffee cup with a black lid like we all use today. In another you can see the top of Monroe Street which has already changed with construction. These images are the ones I personally value the most as though I were a documentarian. I also do some fantasy work and am branching out with selective mural work.
The Nest
Morning on Monroe
