Why building Community is Essential for Artists in New York
Meet Roxa Smith, Caracas-born, Brooklyn-based, whose practice spans figurative painting, collage, and embroidery. Trained at Bowdoin and UC Santa Cruz, she moved to New York in 1991 and has since shown widely, including solo and two-person exhibitions at C24 Gallery, features at the Pocket Art Museum in Austin, and coverage in outlets like The New York Times, Brooklyn Rail, and New American Painting. She’s also earned recognition from NYFA and, most recently, a 2025 Arts to Hearts Project merit award. This interview is published on our Women in Arts Network website.
In this conversation, Roxa traces a path from a creative childhood in Venezuela to formative plein-air years in Santa Cruz, where mentors and daily painting set her course. She talks about how she knows a work is clicking when it starts “talking back” and walks us through a slow, layered process in gouache and acrylic, editing with white to keep color crisp. We also touch on her interiors and city scenes: rooms marked by objects rather than people, and landscapes dotted with tiny figures both standing in for life lived.
What we learned: consistency beats haste; treat the studio like a job; build community intentionally; and be clear-eyed about costs if you’re eyeing New York. Roxa also makes a timely case for handmade work in an AI-heavy moment, positioning her paintings as records of how places feel and linger in memory. She closes with practical guidance for emerging artists apply widely, show cohesive series, and keep the joy in the work while you grind.
Roxa Smith (b. 1962, Caracas, Venezuela) is a Brooklyn-based artist working in figurative painting, collage, and embroidery. Originally from Venezuela, she earned a BA in Art History and German from Bowdoin College and a Postgraduate degree in Fine Art from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She moved to New York City in 1991. Smith’s exhibitions include a solo show at C24 Gallery, NYC (March 2023), a sold-out two-person exhibit at the same gallery (2022), and the featured artist at the Pocket Art Museum’s spring exhibit in Austin, TX (2023). Her work has also been exhibited at The Focus Gallery, Sheldon Museum (Lincoln, NE), The Rodger Smith Hotel (NYC), Kenise Barnes Fine Arts (NY), Conde Nast Lobby (NYC), George Billis Gallery (NYC and LA), and Visage Arte Contemporaneo (Panama). Notable awards include: 2025 Arts to Hearts Project 100 Emerging Artists merit award, Artist Grant from the Vermont Studio Center (2021), finalist for the MTA Arts and Design commission (2017), the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA)-Basil Alkazi Fellowship (2013) and a NYFA painting fellowship in 2012. Smith’s work has been featured in publications such as 100 Emerging Artists 2025 Arts to Hearts Project, Contemporary Collage Magazine (2024), Brooklyn-Rail Magazine (2023), I Like Your Work (Fall 2024, Spring 2023), Interlocutor Magazine, Viceversa Magazine (2022), Studio Visit Magazine (2024, 2022, 2011), Artspace Magazine (2019), New American Painting Magazine (2012), The New York Times (2015), and HuffPost (2012).
1. How did you get started in your art career?
My artistic journey began in Caracas, Venezuela, where creativity was central to our family life. My mother, a commercial artist and amateur sculptor/designer, encouraged my siblings and me to draw and paint, making art a natural part of our upbringing. After boarding school in the U.S. and earning my BA in Art History and German from Bowdoin College, I spent a year in New York exploring art opportunities but found myself unfulfilled and overwhelmed by the city. This led me to Santa Cruz, California, where my sister was studying and where I found my footing as an artist. In Santa Cruz, I joined a group of plein-air painters led by Lundy Siegriest and Terry St. John, one of the original Bay Area plein-air artists. I fell in love with plein air painting and began painting daily, forming close friendships with fellow artists. This community drew me to UC Santa Cruz in the late 1980s, which had an excellent program for painters and printmakers. In 1987, I entered UCSC’s Fifth Year Post Graduate program, where inspiring teachers and colleagues shaped both my artistic vision and work ethic, giving me the determination to pursue art as my calling. I returned to New York in 1991 and have been creating art ever since.
The key to maintaining this balance is accepting that being an artist means embracing uncertainty while staying completely committed to the work.
Roxa Smith
2. When you’re creating something new, what makes you pause and say, This is working?
I know a painting is working when it starts to have a conversation with me. My paintings develop slowly over time—I need to live with them, observe them, and let them guide the process rather than rushing to completion. There’s a specific moment when the painting begins to take on a life of its own and starts telling me what it needs. It’s almost like the work becomes my collaborator, showing me what’s missing or what doesn’t belong. When I reach that point where the painting is actively participating in its own creation, I know I’m on the right track. This kind of dialogue can’t be forced or hurried—it emerges naturally when I allow myself to slow down and truly listen to what the work is becoming.
3. How do you balance your personal life with your art career?
I treat my art career with the same seriousness and commitment of any day job—it requires my full dedication and consistent effort. The challenge is that unlike traditional employment, it doesn’t always generate steady income to cover expenses. In the past, I worked as an ESL teacher to support my practice, and in recent years I’ve been fortunate to live off savings while supplementing with commissions and art sales. This lifestyle requires tremendous determination and sacrifice, not just from me but from my family. My wife’s understanding and support of my passion has been essential—she’s a major reason I can continue pursuing art as a career. The key to maintaining this balance is accepting that being an artist means embracing uncertainty while staying completely committed to the work. Just as my paintings require patience and can’t be rushed, building a sustainable art career takes time and faith in the process. It demands the same qualities I bring to my paintings: dedication, patience, and the willingness to let things develop naturally rather than forcing immediate results. Both my art and my career require me to trust the process, even when the outcome isn’t immediately clear.
4. How do you envision the future of your art and its impact on the world?
I envision my work becoming increasingly significant as both artistic expression and historical documentation. Each painting tells a story centered on traces of human presence, capturing the fleeting memory of places by portraying their essence rather than simply documenting their appearance. They become repositories of nostalgia that remind us who we are and where we come from. With the advancement of AI, my commitment to handmade work becomes even more meaningful. Rather than relics, I see these paintings as increasingly valuable precisely because of their human-made quality and invested labor. Given my subject matter—the emotional connection between people and places—working in this traditional way is inseparable from the message. Looking forward, my work will serve as a multilayered window into history. As our world becomes more digitized, paintings that capture human memory through purely human means offer genuine expressions of how we experienced and remembered the spaces that shaped us. My work creates a personal record of this transitional moment between analog and digital ways of seeing and being in the world.
I know a painting is working when it starts to have a conversation with me.
Roxa Smith
5. What mediums and techniques do you primarily work with?
Over the past eight years, I’ve primarily worked with water-based mediums—gouache and acrylic—applying them in thin layers to maintain the vibrancy and prevent the colors from becoming too dark or muddy. When areas do become overworked, I simply paint them out with white and start fresh. I use various mediums to extend the paint for workability rather than for any specific visual effects. My paintings are characterized by their bold, vivid colors and strong patterns, which are achieved through this methodical layering approach.
6. Do you have any parting words of wisdom for our readers or aspiring artists?
I have several pieces of advice for aspiring artists considering the move to NYC, which is where I live (but this advice could be taken for any aspiring artist.) First, be realistic about the practical side of life. New York is expensive and can overwhelm you without a clear purpose and budget. Be honest about studio costs, art materials, and rent before making the leap. Building a real-life community is absolutely crucial since the city can be isolating. Consider enrolling in classes at places like the Studio School, Arts Students League, or alternative art centers. Having artist friends for feedback and support is essential. You could also join online art groups, but make sure you find people within these networks to genuinely exchange ideas with. If your studio is in an artist building, that’s another great way to build community. The bottom line is that having a supportive network is crucial to surviving and thriving in NYC. Create a schedule that balances making art with marketing yourself—successful artists need both. Don’t be discouraged by rejections; keep applying to shows, galleries, grants, and alternative venues. Go to exhibitions for inspiration, but resist comparing yourself to others. Don’t be afraid to experiment, but present consistent bodies of work when applying for opportunities. Most importantly, don’t rush to market your work before developing a strong portfolio. Take time to find your voice first. Above all, be persistent, patient, kind to yourself, and have fun. Delight in what you’re doing—that joy will carry you through the challenges.
Roxa Smith’s paintings take everyday spaces and cityscapes and reimagine them with bold pattern, layered color, and traces of life—whether through familiar objects in a room or tiny figures scattered across an urban scene. What we take from her work and story is that persistence, patience, and discipline are as central to a career in the arts as creativity itself.
Her journey shows the importance of building community, trusting the process, and staying committed to making despite uncertainty. Through her practice, she shows us how ordinary spaces can be transformed into visual narratives that hold memory and meaning.
To learn more about Roxa, visit the links below.
