Dustin D. Smith

BIO

Growing up in chaos, I turned to “making” as a way to control something in my life. Starting from nothing can be terrifying, but bringing things into existence brought me peace. 

I grew up in central Kansas, and at University, I was fortunate to have great art and design instructors that challenged me and nurtured my desire to create. Design took me into the agency world in Chicago in 1994, San Francisco in 2004, and simultaneously around the world for collaborations in print, film and digital production for a wide variety of clients.

As an adventurer and outdoorsman, access to the outdoors drew my family and I to Bend, Oregon in 2021. Living on the edge of the forest, near the Deschutes River, and having amazing mountain bike trails and snowboarding on Mount Bachelor has a great deal of influence on my mindset and my work. Hiking, paddling, camping and exploring fill me with ideas for more art than I can create in a lifetime.

Upon moving to Oregon, I made a move to shift focus on my art practice, and am now a full-time working artist.

STATEMENT

In my work, I explore impermanence via methods of pigment application and erasure, layering and erosion. My process is a tangible demonstration of creation and decay, resulting in a lattice of skeletonized structures symbolic of artifacts, events, and civilization itself. Everything born withers, and everything built crumbles. I work to embrace this duality, creating evidence of my existence before I turn to dust.

MY WORK

In a life that seems like the blink of an eye, I’ve experimented with a myriad of styles from realism in graphite to abstract canvases, with a range of three-dimensional mediums sprinkled throughout. 

My precise, yet organic abstracts visualize impermanence through carefully balanced compositions, material application, orchestrated decay and erosion. My highly detailed watercolors create a feeling of calm via simple, yet precariously balanced arrangements with complex and representational geological textures. 

My work is grounded by a strong sense of design developed over three decades as an award-winning graphic designer and creative director. Visual evidence of climate change, disappearing ecosystems, and evolving geology weigh heavily on my mind and my work.

I'm always exploring and developing new collections that challenge my comfort zone and help me understand new mediums and my own existence.

EXHIBITIONS

Solo Exhibitions

2026 - (Upcoming) - Title TBD, Sandzen Gallery, Lindsborg, KS
2026 - 'Rise & Fall', Shevlin Crossing Gallery, Bend, Oregon

Group Exhibitions

2026 - 'Beneath The Surface', Woodward Contemporary, San Diego, CA
2025 - 'Abstract National", Mark Arts, Wichita, KS
2024 - 'Untitled', Gallery 13 UK, London, United Kingdom
2023 - 'The One With The Squares' , El Paso Frame Co., El Paso, TX

Shows

2026 - (Upcoming) 'Art in the High Desert', Bend, Oregon
2025 - 'Art in the High Desert', Bend, Oregon

AWARDS FOR DESIGN AND CREATIVITY
(1994 through 2016)

Gold, Silver and Bronze Cannes Lions
One Show Pencils and Merits
Gold, Silver and Bronze Effies
NY Festivals
London International Awards
D&AD
Kelly Finalist
Numerous Addy Awards
Obie Awards for Excellence in Outdoor
Webby Awards

PUBLICATIONS

CA Advertising Annual
CA Design Annual
The One Show - One Magazine
Lurzer’s Archive
Print Design Annual
Print’s Best Booklets and Brochures
Contagious
Creativity
AdAge
Adweek

ART FOR SALE

Most of my work is currently for sale here on my site, or by messaging me directly here. I generally add work to my shop in collections, or in releases within collections. Subscribing to my newsletter here is the best way to get notifications about releases, new work, and upcoming shows and events.

I am also generally open to commissions based on my recent work. Please contact me for more information and to initiate that process.