The artist I'm profiling today is someone I've met personally and who's work I enjoy: Anthony Smith Jr. Anthony Smith, Jr.'s paintings combine abstract expression with epic narratives that explore human will, slavery, and love .

He was born in 1976 in Dallas, Texas and raised in Plant City, Florida. While yet a teenager, Anthony began exploring art as a significant means of personal expression. He earned his undergraduate degree as a double major in Fine Arts and Political Science at Amherst College in 1999, completing his B.A. degree program with thesis research on landscape painting techniques while on study abroad in Europe. In 2001, he went on to receive a Master of Fine Arts in Painting from the University of Michigan, where he was also an adjunct lecturer and teaching assistant. Anthony finished his graduate education at an exchange program in Japan at Kyoto Seika University where he studied wood-block printmaking. In Japan, Anthony became enamored of the Japanese symbols and papers that are a frequent element in his paintings.

Anthony's paintings have recently been exhibited as part of "Icograms" at the Newton Art Center (Newton, Massachusetts) and at the Holland Area Arts Council (Holland, Michigan). He was a contributing artist to the critically noted "Harlem World" exhibit at the Studio Museum of Harlem in 2004. From 2000 to 2003, his work was displayed in studios and galleries in Michigan, New York and Texas.

Alongside his developing career as a painter, Anthony has been a research associate at the national desk of The New York Times since 2002. In that capacity, Anthony has contributed to several important articles, for one of which he was given a by-line. He has also worked in various arts organizations in Michigan, Maine and Massachusetts.

In 2001, Anthony moved to New York City where he currently resides in the Inwood section of Manhattan.