Kansas Smeaton

Kansas Smeaton (b. 1992) is a New Zealand born artist who lives and practices in Sydney, NSW. Spending her childhood in a liberal minded community environment in New Zealand has greatly shaped her attitude towards autonomy, freedom and self expression. Smeaton’s work draws on the artist’s fascination with the complicated relationship between power, identity and the notion of desire. Engaging with the traditional art historical strategies of symbolism and portraiture, and using Carl Jung’s theoretical framework of persona, the self and the subconscious, Smeaton’s paintings not only comment on ideas around authenticity and self discovery but also critique christocentric ideas around sexuality.

Central to Smeaton’s work is the portrayal of strong subjects who push the boundaries of societal expectations. Theatre, allegory and Jung’s archetypes are referenced along with portraits of subjects who exude confidence within themselves. The focus of these portraits are members of the artists community who live their life in an authentic and unconventional way. Whether women who practice liberation, members of the LGBTI community, sex workers or those who are simply undefinable, these subjects are not repressed victims of their gender or sexuality, instead they rise above it in power to claim their bodily autonomy, sexuality and even eroticism.