Michael Smith was born in Chicago in 1951 and currently lives and works in Brooklyn and Austin. He received a BA from Colorado College and is an alumnus of the Whitney’s Independent Study Program. Smith first became known for the video and performance works he made in New York in the late 1970s starring, Mike, an everyman version of Smith, who remains infused as a central element in his work.

He has had many solo and group shows in the United States and Europe, and over the years has collaborated with other artists including Doug Skinner, William Wegman, Joshua White and Seth Price. Smith’s work was included in the Whitney Biennial 2008.