Eleanor Dorrien-Smith is a British-American artist based in Bristol. She graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2008 with a BA in Fashion with Print, and worked for over a decade as a fashion and textile designer. Her work is shaped by a longstanding connection to the Isles of Scilly, where she has returned for over three decades.
Working between observation and memory, Eleanor’s paintings explore the shifting relationship between land and sea. Her approach reflects both a background in British watercolour traditions and a more expressionist use of colour and line.
What strikes to the core of my being in the Isles of Scilly is the presence of so many ages in one view. When in Scilly, time exists in my mind in units of millenia, not days or weeks or months.
My lens is that of a British-American, influenced by generations of British watercolourists in my family and also the aesthetic of my American family.
Repeated visits to the same group of islands have allowed Eleanor to observe subtle and profound changes in the landscape over time, deepening her connection to the place. A personal connection to family members who also painted the islands adds a further sense of continuity within the work.
Eleanor’s paintings have been selected for the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in 2023, 2024 and 2025, including works chosen by Eileen Cooper RA, Hurvin Anderson RA and Christopher Le Brun PPRA. She has also exhibited with Messums London as part of Emerging Landscape Painting Today, and with Messums West in Painting : A Changed Environment.
She works from her home studio in Bristol. Her work is held in private collections across the UK and USA.
