James Agrell Smith

James Agrell Smith (1913-1988)

James Agrell Smith was born in Stettler, Alberta. Smith started sketching by drawing samples of plants he picked up on nature walks with his father, and in this way he trained himself as an artist. In 1931, at 17 years old, Smith enlisted in the Royal Canadian Navy as a boy seaman and was discharged in 1947. During that time, he took a brief summer art course at Mount Allison University in New Brunswick in 1944. Following his years in the Navy, Smith took up a full-time job working for Canada Post. Smith worked in a variety of media but was best known for his woodcuts and sumi ink drawing. He became a member of the Canadian Society of Painters, Etchers, and Engravers (CPE) in 1952 and was involved with setting up the Western Chapter of the CPE. His work is held within the collections of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the Art Gallery of Alberta, the Glenbow Museum, and elsewhere.