Lucien Smith has sadly passed away.
The contemporary artist from New York City died on Monday (September 7) at 37 years old.
Longtime friend and gallerist Bill Powers, who presented Lucien‘s first solo gallery exhibition, confirmed the news of his passing.
“When people remember contemporary art from the early teens of this century, it will be impossible not to include the work of Lucien Smith in that conversation,” Billshared withPage Six.
“I’ll think of him whenever it rains, and sunny days, too,” he added. “Our thoughts are with his mother and little brother now. Lucien had bought a house in Montauk where they all lived. His family was important to him.”
Lucien was supposed to open a show this week at the Tripoli Gallery, but it is said to be delayed in the wake of his death while the gallery “discuss and work on future dates of the exhibition with his family.”
“All of my love is with Lucien, his mother Vivian, and all those dear to him,” the Tripoli Gallery owner, Tripoli Patterson, shared in a statement to Page Six. “He is a bright star who will continue shining in his new form and through all the artworks he shared with us. As we mourn his way too early departure, I find the strength to remain steadfast with the responsibility he entrusted me with: exhibiting his work and completing his vision of ‘Delay of Game’ the exhibition of his final gesture of four rain paintings made on the abandoned baseball field in Camp Hero, Montauk, NY.”
Lucien was best known for his “Rain Paintings,” where he used a fire extinguisher to spray paint onto a canvas.
Early on, he had a meteoric rise in the art world, even landing on the Forbes “30 under 30” list for two years in a row, in 2013 and 2014.
Our thoughts go out to Lucien Smith‘s loved ones during this time. RIP.
