Josh Smith: ‘My life is soup. I just eat it and spit it out’

Josh Smith b. 1976, United States Follow +

'They're kinda abstract. There's 16 of them and they're all very good.'

Fresh out of the shower from Vienna, Josh Smith introduces his solo exhibition Studio News at Galerie Eva Presenhuber (24 May–20 July 2024). Fish, palm trees, and the Grim Reaper ('I mean that was a really bad one') have all graced the New Yorker's gestural and colour-rich canvases over his 20-year career. This time, it's bats: 'They're like birds, just way cooler.'

As the show opened in the Austrian capital, Ocula sat down with Smith to discuss his latest YouTube ventures, recent stencilled paintings, and early days as Christopher Wool's assistant.

What was the biggest revelation you've had about Vienna?

I've been a few times but never realised how delicious the water tastes, like something very expensive. It comes right out of the mountains and I can't drink enough of it.

The show is named after your latest venture 'Studio News', a lo-fi series on YouTube and Instagram where you discuss your artistic pursuits and sometimes nothing at all. What do you enjoy about making videos?

I was looking for a way to have more fun with what I do. After painting for so long, it's nice to have something new to play with. It shows a side of myself that's different from what people know.

I try not to overthink it. When I have a funny idea, I'll film it quickly and just forget about it. I don't like to spend too much time fussing over it, but I think the title 'Studio News' is hilarious because nothing really happens in the studio most of the time.

How did you come up with your handle @joshiejosho?

I love the film Donnie Darko (2001). I should have done something better, but I don't care.

Bats feature heavily in this show. Why?

They're like birds, but way cooler. But yes, I have noticed that my work has had quite a Halloween theme lately. Earlier this year, Supreme asked me to do a big wall painting for a newly opened store in Shanghai, so I painted a big Grim Reaper and cut bat stencils for the background. So I had these stencils in my studio and started making paintings with them.

I'm not a very precise person and wanted to make something that overpowered my gestural dependencies. I could have used silkscreen, but I didn't want it to look perfect. I wanted it to look child-made so that viewers wouldn't feel intimidated. They can bring their own self into looking at the work. I don't want to seal it shut.

They are paintings that hold no secrets.

Yes, completely. I like art that shows exactly how it was made. Art that is not a mystery, but just coalesces into an image. It's not like Leonardo da Vinci or like magic. The only magical part is the miracle that all these things can work as a painting.

Do you enjoy being alone in the studio? Do you work well with others?

I wouldn't know what to do if somebody was around. I'm not a good boss, so I work by myself. Some days I'm okay, other days I'm not. There's a comfort in embracing sadness and then growing out of it. But I enjoy that rhythm, one I have to learn to surf.

How do you prepare for a show?

I've been doing shows now for 25 years. I understand more about what I'm doing each time. When I learn something, I also try to unlearn something; I don't like it being easy as I feel guilty.

This show is a way to open back up again. If you're playing pool, you have to break up the triangle of balls. I like to destroy what I've done. It's interesting for me and hopefully interesting for others.

I also appreciate people who care enough about art to think about it, talk about it, and help me show it. I think we were the kids in high school who were a little lost and I liked that we all found each other in this weird community. Conversations like this also allow me to think out loud and it helps me to understand my own paintings.

When you were that kid in high school starting out as an artist, who did you look to for inspiration?

For seven years, I worked as Christopher Wool's assistant, cleaning silk screens and helping around the studio. I love Christopher and learned a lot from him about his contemporaries like Franz West, Martin Kippenberger, Albert Oehlen, and Dieter Roth.

I got to know some of his friends and was lucky enough to be around a lot of art and artists.

He taught me to take chances, to make mistakes and share them. No one's going to die because of a painting and every risk you take in painting is simulated.

What advice would you give to a young artist?

If you can't make the art that you want, make the art that you can. Before I had a studio, I would photocopy books at the office store and give them to my friends. Plant a seed and then it slowly starts to open and grow.

Also, mind your own business—just do your thing and try to build a world within your art. Don't make one thing and wait for validation. Keep building that world and eventually people will start to understand what you're trying to say. At the very least, you'll understand a little more about yourself.

It's also important to find a group of supportive peers. Nurture those relationships and gain the respect of the people around you. You can only do that by being yourself and being respectful. I've realised how sensitive people are and I'm a sensitive son of a bitch. My life is soup; I just eat it and spit it out. —[O]

Main image: Exhibition view: Josh Smith,Studio News, Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Vienna (24 May–20 July 2024). © Josh Smith. Courtesy the artist and Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zurich / Vienna. Photo: Jorit Aust.