Paige Smith (artist)

Paige Smith, known professionally as "A Common Name", is an American visual artist, graphic and product designer living in Los Angeles. Smith has been critically regarded for her commercial installations and international street art project, Urban Geode.[1][2]

Paige Smith
(A Common Name)
Born (1982-04-27) April 27, 1982
Grand Rapids, Michigan
NationalityAmerican
EducationTexas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
Known forInstallation, sculpture, graphic design
MovementInstallation art, Street installation
Websitewww.acommonname.com

Background

Smith grew up in Texas and earned her BFA in Design Communications at Texas Tech University. After graduation, she moved to San Francisco and worked in graphic design, building marketing materials and branding strategies for corporate clients.[3]

Street Art & ‘Urban Geode’

Smith is best known for creating "Urban Geode," a series of geode-like sculptures made of paper or resin, which she installs in urban settings. The project began in 2011 when Smith came across a photograph of an amethyst that she was inspired to recreate out of paper. Noting the increasing prevalence of murals on the streets of Los Angeles, Smith was moved to put her artwork on the streets as well.[4] For her first piece, Smith found a building with a chipped brick within her community of the Historical Arts District. She realized the shape of the missing brick was the perfect fit for her geode sculpture and created a customized mold to fit inside.[5]

One unusual aspect of "Urban Geode" is it is often found in unconventional locations. Harriet Williams of The Huffingpost Post UK reports: "Paige Smith’s Urban Geode project fills up the cracks and decayed spaces of Los Angeles...".[6] Since first installation in Los Angeles, Smith has refined her "Urban Geode" project and put up installations in various urban settings around the world, including locations in Spain, Bali, Turkey, Dubai and the United States.[7]

Smith’s work has received critical support and has been featured in print art books, online forums and traditional press sources including: LA Canvas,[8] Angeleno magazine,[9] The Huffington Post,[10] and the Los Angeles Times.[11]

Commercial Installations

As a fine artist, Smith has translated her geode designs to fit larger corporate and gallery spaces. Smith has been commissioned to create several site-specific installations, including:

  • The Box Geode at the Los Angeles Standard Hotel (2012)[12]
  • Creeping Portend at CBRE's downtown Los Angeles offices (2014)[13]
  • Deranged Amalgamation at Maker City L.A. (2014)[14]
  • Minute Infinite at Smashbox Studios (2015)[15]

Additionally, she has been featured in several group exhibitions, showing work alongside famed street artists Gregory Siff, CYRCLE, Dave Kinsey and Retna.[16]

Smith’s work was installed as the backdrop for a Keds (shoes) global rebrand ad campaign featuring Taylor Swift and promoting female empowerment in the arts.[17]

Artist in Residence

Smith has expanded her practice to focus more on travel and collaboration. She was asked to be the first artist in residence at HAHA Magazine x Paradigm Gallery in Philadelphia where she created a citywide scavenger hunt of her geodes and taught classes to engage in a dialogue about the benefits of public art.[18]

Dubai Design Week: S*uce

In October 2015, Smith collaborated with S*uce, a local fashion and lifestyle brand, to create a trail of THINGS [EXTRA]ORDINARY around Dubai's design district. This urban installation elevated everyday objects, from a rocking chair to a water shed, through the placement of Smith's geodes to create re-imagined landscapes. [19]

Maitland Historical Museum

In early 2016, Smith took on her first project in the Southeast, serving as artist in residence at the Maitland Historical Museum in Florida. Drawing on her work with the "Urban Geode" project, she created site-specific installations outdoors throughout the Maitland Art Center’s National Landmark campus.

References
  1. Berg, Nate. "The LA street artist who sees beauty in the cracks of our cities", The Guardian, Los Angeles, 8 May 2015. Retrieved on 29 March 2016.
  2. Nawrath, Marcel. "Los Angeles: An Alternative Art Tour", 16 March 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  3. Kaye, Leon. "Paige Smith’s Paper Geodes Add Sparkle to Nondescript Los Angeles Buildings", Inhabitat, 3 April 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  4. Smith, Paige (5 June 2014). "Art and Seeking: Talking to Paige Smith (A Common Name)". Art and Seeking (Interview). Interviewed by Lizy Dastin. Los Angeles, California. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  5. Etter, Sarah Rose. "Geode Jawns: The Street Gems of Paige Smith", Fanzine, 18 November 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  6. Williams, Harriet (4 October 2012). "Paige Smith's Urban Geode Project Brightens Up LA". The Huffington Post UK. United Kingdom. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  7. Engström, Frida (2014). Gerillaslöjd – garngraffiti, DIY och den handgjorda revolutionen, p.98-99. Hemslöjdens Förlag, Stockholm. ISBN 9789187471025.
  8. Gardiner, Ross. (May/June 2013), "Hidden Gems: Behind the Subtle Street Art of Artist and Designer Paige Smith", LA Canvas, 3(4): 36-38. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  9. Gluck, Marissa. "The Renegade", Angeleno (December 2012): 85. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  10. Genuske, Amber. "Geode Public Art Project Mixes Nature Into Urban Spaces", The Huffington Post, 3 April 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  11. Vankin, Deborah. "Women street artists are focus of upcoming LALA Gallery exhibit", Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, 5 July 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  12. Robinson, Susan (3 March 2015). ""Geode" Artist Paige Smith (b. 1982)". Rocks & Minerals. 90 (2): 176–179. doi:10.1080/00357529.2015.997157.
  13. CBRE. "Inspiring Space: CBRE's Journey to a New Way of Working", 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
  14. "A Common Name / Urban Geodes at Maker City LA - Maker City LA We are the Dreamers, the Creators, the Makers". makercityla.com. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  15. "Paige Smith at Smashbox Studios - Smashbox Studios". Smashbox Studios. 2015-07-27. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  16. Caro. "On View: "Steer Ahead" Group Show at Soze Gallery", Hi-Fructose: The New Contemporary Art Magazine, 24 April 2014. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  17. Nudd, Tim. "Taylor Swift Stars in Global Rebrand for Keds: 'Ladies First Since 1916'", AdWeek, 21 July 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  18. "A Common Name", HAHA x Paradigm, 4 March 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
  19. Essertier, Dylan. "Celebrated LA Artist Paige Smith Transforms Dubai", Savoir Flair, 29 October 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
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