THE BIT ABOUT

Holly Smith is an English–German artist living and working between Karlsruhe and Porthtowan. Growing up in England and training as a competitive swimmer, her early life was shaped by discipline, repetition and measurable achievement. Only retrospectively did the deeper influence of England, as an island where you never find yourself more than 1,5 hours from the ocean, begin to surface in her artistic practice.

Initially, she studied History of Art in Munich before continuing in Sculpture at the Art Academy in Karlsruhe. Within her work, two visual languages coexist: one quiet, subtle and restrained; the other vivid, painterly and alive with movement. Much like speaking two languages, these approaches reflect a life shaped by more than one culture.

Her practice is an inward, all-consuming, overdue observation of the everyday—of spaces we inhabit and pass through. Not concerned with being loud, but with reflecting our presence within place: tracing journeys through environments, and the subtle shifts that occur along the way. Walking, travelling alone, hiking and moving along trails are central to how she lives and sees, remaining quiet guides within her work.