Bob Smith was born in Springfield, MA in 1944. A graduate in graphics from the School of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, he was awarded a Charles H. Whitman traveling scholarship by the Boston Museum of Fine Arts in 1969. He traveled to Europe, deciding to settle in Madrid then Morocco, where he learned woodcraft and silver inlay. Smith later returned to Madrid where work was brought to the public by Galeria Vandrès, a prominent avant-garde art gallery. Between 1971 and 1977, Smith was regularly exhibited across Europe, including the 1973 Biennale de Paris.
In 1977, Bob Smith settled in New York City. Smith became friends with artists such as Michel Auder, Alice Neel, Gregory Corso, Gary Indiana, Larry Rivers, Jack Waters and composer Meredith Monk. He collaborated on projects with many of these artists, particularly avant-garde choreographer and dancer Blondell Cummings, for whom he did the stage design and costumes for Basic Strategies No. V. Smith was also a visual artist for the Cultural Council Foundation, where he taught art to seniors and mentally handicapped adults.
In 1982, Smith traveled to Denmark on an Alumni Travelling Scholarship from the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. In 1988, he participated in a residency at the Mac-Dowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire.
By the late eighties, Smith moved to Miami. During this time, Smith was battling debilitating symptoms of AIDS but found joy in creating art and being active in various art collectives and organizations. Smith passed away in Miami, Florida in 1990.
