Adrian Smith, Textile Artist, Painter and Designer.
Adrian Smith is based between Orkney and Stirlingshire in Scotland. Brought up in the Orkney Isles, his work is intimately shaped by the landscape and culture of the Islands.
After graduating from Edinburgh College of Art and the Royal College of Art In the early 90’s he moved abroad to work as a designer in Italy’s fashion Industry, working for a number of high-profile brands over a 25-year period, including Gucci, Prada, Cerruti, Roberto Cavalli, Chiara Boni, Ck Calvin Klein, Gianfranco Ferre’ and Les Copains.
In 2019 he chose to step back from the fashion Industry and returned to Britain. He has since focused almost exclusively on Textile Art, a medium he had worked in alongside his commercial design activity for a freer personal creative expression.
Adrian is an exhibiting member of the Scottish Society of Artists and EDGE Textile Artists Scotland, participating in EDGE’s regular exhibition program throughout Scotland. Adrian’s work is characterised by intense textural depth and rich colour use in his high-relief semi-abstract textile panels. The rich surface texture is achieved through fabric manipulation and embroidery techniques. The Artist strives to build seductive, immersive moods to capture the audience and stimulate reflection on their own interpretation of the message or inspiration behind the work.
Recent exhibitions include:-
- EDGE Textile Artists’ ‘Surfaces and Undercurrents’ show at the Dundas Street Gallery in Edinburgh during 2024.
- EDGE’s 2-year anniversary exhibition in Peebles, Scotland in 2025.
- Adrian is currently exhibiting in a solo show - “A Selective Memory”, at the Ship of Fools Gallery in Kirkwall, Orkney until the 28th of October.
