Les Schmidt was born and raised in the Northeast, where frequent family trips to the shore and through farm country served as early influences. He moved to New Orleans in 1982, stimulated by the city’s rich history of artists, Old World architecture and famous waterways. He started making photographs in 2001 after being asked to style photo shoots for a local modern architect, instantly becoming captivated by the art and process of photography. Les attended the New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts, twice winning the Owen Murphy Faculty Award for Photography. He is currently represented by Guy Lyman Fine Art.

Schmidt primarily captures austere, coastal landscapes, but has recently developed a body of work focused on still life, as seen in the 2015 exhibition Dorothy Jean at Guy Lyman Fine Art in New Orleans. He has documented Hurricane Katrina represented by his portfolio Katrina TEN and has just added a series of abstractions made with an old BlackBerry Storm camera phone. His work has been shown in New Orleans, LA; Monroe, LA; Lafayette, LA; Covington, LA; Grand Isle, LA; Seaside, FL; Naples, FL; Cape Girardeau, MO; Johnson City, TX; Minneapolis, MN; Essex Junction, VT and Portland, OR. His photographs have also been used in the 2013 film Ender’s Game, in the January 2012 issue of IQ Magazine, and in Chrysler’s Super Bowl XLVI commercial starring Clint Eastwood. His work has been reviewed in Art Voices (Issue 21, 2009) and Pelican Bomb (November 2015) and published in exhibition catalogues by Black Box Gallery, PhotoPlace Gallery, Mpls Photo Center and Darkroom Gallery.

Recent Exhibitions

2017  Cooperstown Art Association: 82nd Annual National Exhibition, CAA Village Building, Cooperstown, NY

2017  The Red Clay Survey: 2017 Exhibition of Contemporary Southern Art,Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL

2017  St. Tammany Art Association: 52nd National Juried Exhibition, STAA Art House, Covington, LA

2017  Camera USA™ 2017: National Photography Exhibition and Award, The von Liebig Art Center, Naples, FL

2017  Line: 2017 National Juried Exhibition, Attleboro Arts Museum, Attleboro, MA

2017  RECOLLECTIONS: A Community Photography Project, New Orleans Photo Alliance, New Orleans, LA

2017  Masur Museum of Art: 54th Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA

2016  Insight Photography Show: New Beginnings, Rail Yard Studios, Nashville, TN

2016  Highway 90: Beyond the Rigolets, Solo Exhibition, Guy Lyman Fine Art, New Orleans, LA

2016  THINGS: a still life show, 5 Press Gallery, New Orleans, LA

2016  Camera USA™ 2016: National Photography Exhibition and Award, The von Liebig Art Center, Naples, FL

2015  Dorothy Jean, Solo Exhibition, Guy Lyman Fine Art, New Orleans, LA