Jean Smith
Encyclopedia
Jean Smith is a Canadian
musician, best known as the lead singer of the Vancouver-based band Mecca Normal
, as well as a painter
, novelist, lecturer
and filmmaker. Her work explores themes of feminism
and anti-authoritarianism.
Smith met Mecca Normal bandmate David Lester
in 1981 while the two were working together at a Vancouver newspaper.
In 1986, Smith and Lester co-created, co-organized and participated in The Black Wedge -- anti-authoritarian musicians and poets touring in the USA, Canada and England.
As a result of her work in Mecca Normal, Smith is now considered a forerunner of the '90s politically-charged riot grrrl
movement, influencing many female artists within, and beyond, the genre.
In August 1993, Smith's first novel I Can Hear Me Fine was published by David Lester's publishing company Get to the Point. Her second novel, The Ghost of Understanding, was published by Arsenal Pulp Press
in 1998. Chapbooks The Family Swan and Other Songs (2002) and Two Stories (2006) were published by Get to the Point.
In 2000 and 2006, Jean Smith received Canada Council for the Arts awards as a professional writer of creative fiction. Her writing appears regularly in Magnet (magazine)
online and MungBeing.
Kill Rock Stars released a spoken word 7" Carboni Angel (wordcore v.3). and a solo album titled Jean Smith in 2000.
Mecca Normal's CDs have been released on Smarten UP! Records, K Records, Matador and Kill Rock Stars. Smith designs the posters and album covers for Mecca Normal.
In 2000, Smith's series of watercolor self-portrait
s (1973–1999, from age 13 onward) were exhibited at Olympia
's Ladyfest
Art Show. The self-portrait series is included in Mecca Normal's music, art and lecture event How Art & Music Can Change the World which, since 2002, Smith and Lester have been presenting in university and high school classrooms, art galleries, indie media outlets and book stores—most recently, the lecture was presented on an April 2009 tour marking Mecca Normal's twenty-fifth anniversary.
Smith has continued the self-portrait series in watercolor, video and photography, including photos from her online dating profiles in her short film Attraction is Ephemeral -- the title of a song on Mecca Normal's 2006 album The Observer. Many of the songs on the CD are about short romances resulting from Smith's online dating experiences.
In August 2009, Smith's photo series Guard Shack was exhibited at Fontanelle Gallery in Portland, Oregon. The show pertained to the publishing of The Art of Touring (Yeti, 2009) -- a collection of photos, art and writing by musicians about touring. Smith's contribution to the book includes abstract paintings from her series 9/11 and an outline of a Mecca Normal tour in the New York area during the 9/11 attacks.
Smith's paintings can be viewed from the Mecca Normal official website.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
musician, best known as the lead singer of the Vancouver-based band Mecca Normal
Mecca Normal
Formed by Jean Smith and David Lester in 1984, Mecca Normal is a two-piece indie rock band from Vancouver, Canada. Smith writes lyrics and sings in a style that is often confrontational and laced with feminist themes; Lester's melodic yet dissonant guitar swirls and loops around her vocals...
, as well as a painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, novelist, lecturer
Lecturer
Lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, lecturer is a position at a university or similar institution, often held by academics in their early career stages, who lead research groups and supervise research students, as well as teach...
and filmmaker. Her work explores themes of feminism
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
and anti-authoritarianism.
Smith met Mecca Normal bandmate David Lester
David Lester
David Lester is the guitar player in the Vancouver, Canada based band Mecca Normal, as well as a painter, graphic designer and publisher at Get to the Point Press...
in 1981 while the two were working together at a Vancouver newspaper.
In 1986, Smith and Lester co-created, co-organized and participated in The Black Wedge -- anti-authoritarian musicians and poets touring in the USA, Canada and England.
As a result of her work in Mecca Normal, Smith is now considered a forerunner of the '90s politically-charged riot grrrl
Riot grrrl
Riot grrrl was an underground feminist punk movement based in Washington, DC, Olympia, Washington, Portland, Oregon, and the greater Pacific Northwest which existed in the early to mid-1990s, and it is often associated with third-wave feminism...
movement, influencing many female artists within, and beyond, the genre.
In August 1993, Smith's first novel I Can Hear Me Fine was published by David Lester's publishing company Get to the Point. Her second novel, The Ghost of Understanding, was published by Arsenal Pulp Press
Arsenal Pulp Press
Arsenal Pulp Press is a Canadian independent book publishing company, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company publishes a broad range of titles in both fiction and non-fiction, and is noted for founding the annual Three-Day Novel Contest .Authors who have been published by Arsenal Pulp ...
in 1998. Chapbooks The Family Swan and Other Songs (2002) and Two Stories (2006) were published by Get to the Point.
In 2000 and 2006, Jean Smith received Canada Council for the Arts awards as a professional writer of creative fiction. Her writing appears regularly in Magnet (magazine)
Magnet (magazine)
Magnet is a music magazine which generally focuses on alternative, independent, or out-of-the-mainstream bands.-History:The magazine is published four times a year, and is independently owned and edited by Eric T. Miller. Music magazines with a similar focus in the 1990s era included Option,...
online and MungBeing.
Kill Rock Stars released a spoken word 7" Carboni Angel (wordcore v.3). and a solo album titled Jean Smith in 2000.
Mecca Normal's CDs have been released on Smarten UP! Records, K Records, Matador and Kill Rock Stars. Smith designs the posters and album covers for Mecca Normal.
In 2000, Smith's series of watercolor self-portrait
Self-portrait
A self-portrait is a representation of an artist, drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by the artist. Although self-portraits have been made by artists since the earliest times, it is not until the Early Renaissance in the mid 15th century that artists can be frequently identified depicting...
s (1973–1999, from age 13 onward) were exhibited at Olympia
Olympia, Washington
Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat of Thurston County. It was incorporated on January 28, 1859. The population was 46,478 at the 2010 census...
's Ladyfest
Ladyfest
Ladyfest is a community-based, not-for-profit global music and arts festival for female artists that features bands, musical groups, performance artists, authors, spoken word and visual artists, films, lectures, art exhibitions and workshops; it is organized by volunteers. The first ever Ladyfest...
Art Show. The self-portrait series is included in Mecca Normal's music, art and lecture event How Art & Music Can Change the World which, since 2002, Smith and Lester have been presenting in university and high school classrooms, art galleries, indie media outlets and book stores—most recently, the lecture was presented on an April 2009 tour marking Mecca Normal's twenty-fifth anniversary.
Smith has continued the self-portrait series in watercolor, video and photography, including photos from her online dating profiles in her short film Attraction is Ephemeral -- the title of a song on Mecca Normal's 2006 album The Observer. Many of the songs on the CD are about short romances resulting from Smith's online dating experiences.
In August 2009, Smith's photo series Guard Shack was exhibited at Fontanelle Gallery in Portland, Oregon. The show pertained to the publishing of The Art of Touring (Yeti, 2009) -- a collection of photos, art and writing by musicians about touring. Smith's contribution to the book includes abstract paintings from her series 9/11 and an outline of a Mecca Normal tour in the New York area during the 9/11 attacks.
Smith's paintings can be viewed from the Mecca Normal official website.