Marie Smith
The Wanderer, 2021 - ongoing

In June 2025, Marie Smith took up the Autograph x Light Work artist residency. They used this opportunity to develop The Wanderer, an ongoing body of work featuring a character – the titular Wanderer – amongst landscapes in London, Velez Blanco in Spain and the New Forest, UK.

Evolving from what initially started as a documentation practice during Covid-19 related lockdown and as a response to the confinement of that time, the works have a performative element, demonstrating how the Wanderer impacts the environment and vice versa – how the environment impacts the Wanderer’s movements. Smith explains: “I can see how the Wanderer has shifted as a character and I hope this can be relatable to those who have a particular interest in the experience of the Black non-binary body, its presence in, and how it navigates nature.”¹

For some of the works in the series, Smith experimented with analogue film and low toxic developers such as sweet corn husk, lavender, thyme and coffee, rescinding control and introducing an element of unpredictability around the image’s final appearance - as demonstrated in the more sepia-toned works on this page. This analogue process enabled Smith to work at a slower and more considered pace: “As a neurodiverse person I struggle to follow steps, so the slowness of film helps me feel centred and for my body and mind to be in unison."²

As a result of the residency, a total of 26 works, including the six works displayed here, are now cared for as part of Autograph’s collection.