Nick Smith is an artist based in London whose work examines the relationship between class and the built environment. Through photography, writing and sound, his practice focuses on the overlooked spaces where everyday systems of labour and access become visible.
His work often begins through sustained observation of the city while moving through it for work and daily life. Smith collects fragments of architecture, language and interaction: photographs of thresholds and interiors, overheard conversations, signage and gestures that quietly organise how people enter and move through spaces. These materials are later assembled into installations, publications and audio works that explore how architecture mediates class, hospitality and control.
Recent projects include Foyer, an ongoing body of work investigating the social choreography of service economies. Developed during a two-year residency at Studio Voltaire supported by the LOEWE Foundation, the project combines photography, text and recorded voices to examine the ways buildings welcome, filter and manage bodies.
Smith works as a property inspector in order to sustain his life as an artist.
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Exhibitions include, solo: OUTPUT Gallery, Liverpool; The Birley, Preston; OUTPOST Gallery, Norwich; Concord Space, L.A; and Photofusion, London. Group shows and screenings: Open City Documentary festival, London; Two Queens, Leicester; TACO!, Thamesmead; Turf Projects, Croydon; Bloomberg New Contemporaries: Cornerhouse, Manchester and Rochelle School, London; Phoenix Art Space, Brighton; Studio Voltaire, London; Peckham 24, London; Karst, Plymouth; Folkestone Triennial and Auto Italia, London.
He holds a Master of Arts Degree in Photography from the Royal College of Art, Bachelor of Arts Degree in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins and a BTEC from Liverpool Community College. In 2023 Nick was selected as an awardee of the second edition of the LOEWE Foundation / Studio Voltaire Award.
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Currents
Nov 2025 - Sept 2026
Develop Your Creative Practice: Arts Council England
A self directed programme of activity focusing on writing, audio production, collaboration and expanding my international network in the US.
Develop Your Creative Practice: Arts Council England
A self directed programme of activity focusing on writing, audio production, collaboration and expanding my international network in the US.
Jan 2026 - Ongoing
Foyer
A generative project that uses the foyer as a site to create new works, conversations and collaborations within a public context. The idea is that this space is a stage that alludes to the city beyond it, where exchange happens between those that provide services and those that receive them.
Foyer
A generative project that uses the foyer as a site to create new works, conversations and collaborations within a public context. The idea is that this space is a stage that alludes to the city beyond it, where exchange happens between those that provide services and those that receive them.
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Contact:
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