A Smith Gallery - “Light” Open Call

“Star Abercromby had been a dancer on the 60’s television show “Laugh In.” She spent her later years as a motivational speaker and flashlight artist. She “painted with light” on stages across the West, avoiding Las Vegas for personal reasons. She married two astronomers and an electrical engineer, finally settling on a battery manufacturing CEO.

However, her true gift, the one that was to be etched on her tombstone, was her ability to light up the lives of random strangers she met in line at the grocery store or pharmacy or sitting next to on the subway or dining at an adjacent table. She honestly and without self-awareness engaged strangers in conversation about something positive about themselves that was not necessarily evident in the moment. “My god, where did you get that lipstick.” “I have never seen anyone with bluer eyes.” “Your smile is like a beacon, no really.”  The young woman was slightly cross-eyed, her lipstick bright orange. His eyes were blue, but he avoided eye contact and looked at the floor. The older woman smiled, barely, once through a constant frown.