Artist Statement
My paintings begin with moments that are easy to pass by: light settling across a field, a road disappearing into trees, or a sky on the edge of changing weather. I’m drawn to the way these ordinary scenes can hold our attention and stay with us long after we’ve left.
The open skies of my childhood in Alberta and the quieter landscapes around my home in Quebec continue to shape my work. Observation, memory, poetry, and time outdoors all inform the paintings. Some begin with a particular place; others take shape around a colour, a mood, or a remembered feeling.
My background in graphic design and illustration informs my sense of composition, colour, and space. In painting, I allow those foundations to meet a looser, more intuitive process. Working in thin layers of acrylic, I build and lift colour, allowing traces of earlier marks to remain. I move between recognizable forms and abstraction, leaving some areas open so that light and atmosphere can carry the painting.
Through this process, I explore how a landscape can feel familiar without belonging to one specific place. I hope my paintings encourage a slower way of looking and offer space for viewers to find their own connections.
Artist Bio
Allison Robin Smith is a Canadian landscape painter based in Saint-Lazare, Quebec. Originally from Alberta, she draws inspiration from the prairie skies of her childhood and the forests, lakes, and open spaces of her adopted home. She studied Illustration and Design at Dawson College in Montreal and became a full-time artist in 2017.
Working primarily in acrylic from her converted barn studio, Allison builds thin layers of colour to explore light, weather, and atmosphere. Her semi-abstract paintings offer an impression of a place remembered, leaving room for viewers to bring their own memories and associations.
Her work has been exhibited in Quebec and Ontario, and she is represented by Galerie d’art Au P’tit Bonheur in La Malbaie, Quebec.
Alongside her painting practice, Allison teaches art and co-founded Art de Vivre, an annual exhibition in Hudson, and Le Collectif, a gallery and creative studio offering exhibitions, workshops, and events.