My Art
You
might be asking yourself what does art have to do with being a lawyer? I
began painting in 1997, producing my first real on-canvas piece in January
1998. I paint every day. Each painting gives me a new perspective on life.
It is also one way that I can express myself without words. For a lawyer,
expression without words might seem like an insurmountable task. However,
I have found that each case in which I am involved has its own feeling.
Each client has a special meaning to me. Learning to feel with my client?s
heart, and know them, and love them, is like creating a painting.
I believe that the practice of law is an art form. Like poetry, it is a way of presenting a case while painting a picture of my client?s life, not just the facts of the particular case.
So, I paint, I write a bit of poetry, and I practice law.
The Gary Wenkle Smith Art Gallery
My office is also my art gallery. During the summer of 1998, I opened a gallery in Laguna Beach, California. I had the opportunity to see, and in my own way study, the work of some of the greats of our time, like Wyland, Jim Warren, and Al Hogue. As you might surmise from my paintings, I have a particular love for the ocean. As a surfer, fisherman, and admirer of the majestic beauty of the sea, I am ever mindful that she can give and take life, but mostly, she is the source. She is awe-inspiring. For those of us knowing her from upon or in the water, it is humbling, as we acknowledge how we are just a drop in the pool, yet therefore an essential part.
