Emigrating artist Steven Smith holds 'liquidation sale' exhibit
05/05/2006
Dan Tranberg Special to The Plain Dealer
Artist, poet and publisher Steven B. Smith has been a beloved fixture in Cleveland's underground art scene since the mid-1970s. Now, at age 60, he and his new wife, Lady, plan to sell their possessions and move to Europe.
To that end, Smith is holding the exhibition "The Other Peoples Art Show: Emigration Liquidation Sale" at Brandt Gallery, 1028 Kenilworth Ave. in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood, through Saturday, May 13.
The show is a mixture of works from Smith's personal collection, featuring collages and assemblages by him and his mother, as well as works in a variety of mediums by many area artists, including Anna Arnold, Bill Brouillard, Joan Deveney, George Fitzpatrick, Tim Herron, Jake Kelly, George Kocar, Ken Motz, Ken Nevadomi, Ed Raffel, Brenda Stumpf, Steve Torkar and others.
In the past year, Smith's life has been marked by extreme highs and lows, His mother, artist and poet Florence E. Smith, also known as "Mother Dwarf", died last summer at age 79.
Since then, Smith fell in love and got married. He was also diagnosed with throat cancer.
Smith reports that his cancer is "both treatable and survivable." While undergoing treatment, he's busy publishing the final issue of "ArtCrimes," a journal of art and poetry that he has produced for the past 20 years.
Call 216-621-1610 or go to www.brandtgallery.org and Smith's personal Web site: www.agentofchaos.com.
Tranberg is an artist and writer living in Cleveland. Art Matters is a column that runs weekly in Friday! covering the area art scene. To be considered for publication, items about shows or openings must be received three weeks in advance. Mail to Plain Dealer Art Critic, 1801 Superior Ave., Cleveland, OH 44114. Fax 216-999-6269.
