John Smither is originally from the Chicago area and grew up in the Midwest with an MFA in printmaking from Washington Univ. in St. Louis. While in grad school he also became interested in with working in video. Once out of school he moved back to Chicago where he continued to make relief prints, video, and large-scale drawings. His subject matter focused on the urban and wild landscapes of the area. At that time, due to technical limitations, he was never able to integrate these mediums into satisfying installations so the different media were typically worked independently. After showing in Chicago at solo and group events for many years he moved to Seattle. ​

In Seattle, he continued to work on large-scale drawings and paintings based on the local environment of the Pacific Northwest. In 2010 he joined forces with another local artist, Zanetka Gawronski and started Core, a non-profit gallery, in Pioneer Square. At about the same time, with video tools being much more affordable and accessible, he also started to reintroduce video into his work. Fast forward to the present day, he creates integrated installations of paintings, woodcuts, and video of various sizes. He has shown his work at numerous venues including a live theatrical version at On The Boards in Seattle. His work is included in numerous private and public collections. John's studio is in Georgetown’s Equinox complex and is open for visits every second Saturday of the month and by appointment.