July 25, 2018
UPCOUNTRY BREWING
by James Smith
“The kind of style that I do” James Smith told WLOS in Asheville, NC “is very replicable. I don’t mind at all sharing with people.” Before leaving Asheville to relocate in San Diego, Smith was known to “drop” his stencil art all over the city for people to find, sometime 4 or 5 portraits a day. When John Cochran opened UpCountry Brewing in 2016 on Haywood Road in West Asheville, however, Smith left a more permanent mark for a grateful community to enjoy. Smith says his work is the product of a journey of self-discovery. His father, who was a Grateful Dead fan, passed away more than a decade ago and Smith began painting as a tribute to him—and while giving his art away has helped Smith discover the value of his gift, hopefully these portraits of Garcia, Hendrix, Joplin, Cash, and others, carry on Smith’s legacy in “Beer City” for a while longer. @1.4.4.0/ @upcountrybrew/
