From Saturday the 9th of April to Saturday the 7th May 2022, @adriancharlessmith ’s DIS/CONNECTED exhibition will be on display at @outerspace.brisbane gallery, located on Brunswick Street in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley. Drawing from the traditions of 19th-century Realism and its direct observation of the modern world, DIS/CONNECTED translates our obsessive behaviours within the virtual world of mobile phones into the analogue medium of paint and brush. 

Smith is an innovative emerging artist based in Meanjin/Brisbane, who uses painting to explore the complexities of human behaviour and our fraught relationship with technology. His artwork draws inspiration from the banal and mundane of everyday life – concepts that have become increasingly relevant in the 21st century. Through his unique abstraction, Smith’s works subtly allude to the human form, encouraging audience engagement in an intriguing way – with images and shapes that are recognisable, yet curiously unfamiliar at the same time. 

Although the interview was filmed at Outer Space, Smith works predominantly in his own space – a narrow studio where he can express his creativity unhindered. Smith creates paintings of all sizes, keeping them organised with handmade wheeled racks, which he often uses in his displays. Smith’s brilliant work has made him a finalist in a multitude of high-profile competitions, including the Brisbane Portrait Prize, the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship and the Clayton Utz Art Award.