The Artists: Jules André Smith
Born in 1880 to American parents in Hong Kong, raised in New York and Connecticut, and educated at Cornell University, André Smith worked for several years as an architect, never giving up on his first love of art. His early passion was printmaking, specifically etching. In 1915, he was awarded a gold medal at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco. During World War I, Smith continued to work in both drawing and printmaking, selected as one of eight artists by the U.S. government to go to France in 1918 to record military activities. He would later publish those works in a book titled In France with the American Expeditionary Forces.
While travelling to Miami in the 1930s, Smith made an unplanned stop in Maitland. Having experienced a stunning sunset on nearby Lake Sybelia, he decided to travel no further and would go on to build his winter home and studio here, which is now the Maitland Art Center. Frustrated and disappointed with the area’s lack of support for contemporary art, Smith began plans for a residential "Lab-Gallery" that would encourage artistic exploration and experimentation in a sheltered studio environment. The studio compound later known as "‘The Research Studio" was the winter residence of prominent American artists such as Ralston Crawford, David Burlick, Ernest Roth, Milton Avery, Arnold Blanch, Doris Lee, and Hal McIntosh. André Smith’s vision continued to thrive for over two decades under the generous financial support from his patron, philanthropist Mary Curtis Bok. Smith’s legacy is alive and well today at the Art & History Museums’ Maitland Art Center through its residency programs and exhibitions.
Smith will also be featured in Art Legends exhibitions at the City of Orlando Terrace Gallery (October 15, 2015 through January 8, 2016) and the Orange County Regional History Center (March 5 through May 29, 2016).
