BIOGRAPHY
Travel, natural history, and art have been the central components of Anthony’s life since he was a child. By the age of eighteen he was exhibiting his bronze wildlife sculptures in London’s famous Mayfair art district. He continued his art career alongside his academic passion, following in the footsteps of his hero Charles Darwin to study Zoology at Cambridge University.
He has now been sculpting professionally for more than twenty-two years and has a large body of work for both public and private collections around the world, including sculptures for the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge and the first new statue commissioned for the Natural History Museum of London for more than eighty years.
HRH Prince Philip unveiling Anthony’s statue of the ‘Young Charles Darwin’ at Cambridge University in 2009
As well as creating life-sized bronze statues for great institutions, Anthony is also known for designing and sculpting a new two-pound coin for the United Kingdom. He has been awarded Artist Residencies in both the Falkland Islands and South Georgia, where he has spent several months living alongside penguins, albatrosses and seals, which continues to inspire his work.
£2 coin designed and sculpted by Anthony Smith for the Royal Mint.
In 2007 Anthony was elected as a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London – the UK’s foremost learned society for the study of Natural History. He continues to study zoology with a particular focus on animal behaviour.
Anthony Smith and Sir David Attenborough with Anthony’s life-sized bronze statue of the Young Charles Darwin at the University of Cambridge.
Anthony’s presenting career began in 2009 when he worked as a television presenter for a documentary series about the life and travels of Charles Darwin. This series involved an eight-month adventure, resailing the Voyage of HMS Beagle around the world on board a beautiful, three masted tallship, during which Anthony featured as one of the regular presenters. Anthony has been presenting and lecturing ever since.
Since 2014 he has presented hundreds of lectures for luxury cruise lines including Silversea, Seabourn, and Ponant.
‘I had the pleasure of attending several presentations by Anthony Smith, the talented bronze sculptor, photographer and excellent storyteller. Anthony’s presentations are a true delight, as he seamlessly blends his love of art, history, and nature into a mesmerizing experience. If you’re looking for a captivating speaker who can inspire and educate – Anthony Smith is the one.’
Ewa Orankiewicz, Seabourn Ovation Guest
In addition to his sculpting and presenting, Anthony is also a photographer. He licenses images to major publications such as National Geographic and has been commissioned to shoot stories for magazines such as BBC Wildlife Magazine. In 2015 Anthony published his first book; a large format photographic account of the Dutch tall ship Stad Amsterdam.
Nine-page article, written and photographed by Anthony for BBC Wildlife.
Sculpting At Sea
As a perfect compliment to Anthony’s lectures, guests on cruises can also have the pleasure of witnessing one of his original sculptures come to life before their very eyes. During the course of a cruise, Anthony will publicly sculpt a brand new artwork on board the ship and then chronicle the process of casting it in bronze for all to follow. Learn more on his Sculpting At Sea website.
