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ethics and morality. It's pretty remarkable for a guy without a high school education to end up as an engineer."
Bom in 1908 in upstate New York, Laurent S. Smith was the product of parents who moved frequently. His father was in the construction business, building dams and office buildings all across the U.S., Mexico and South America. Though blessed with a brilliant and creative mind, Laurent's hopes for a higher education were dashed while he was still in his early teens: He had to drop out of high school to work to support the family.
During his twenties, Smith worked as a surveyor and helped explore a little piece of
Photo courtesy of Gary Spencer Smith
Laurent Smith paints in his Bay St. Louis art studio. This photo was taken around 1996, when Smith was 86. He died Jan. 5, 2003, at the age of 94.
with the house, he inherited his father's artistic
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swampland known as Florida. This was back in the days when alligators literally outnumbered people. With the arrival of the Depression era, Smith was fortunate to be employed by the Tennessee Valley Authority. From there, he was hired as a draftsman by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers stationed in Vicksburg.
"That's where he met my mom, Dessel," Spencer said. "My mom's unique in that she was one of the first women draftsmen for the Corps of Engineers."
After World War II, the pair moved to New Orleans, where Laurent
went to work for Shell Oil. He spent 21 years drafting and exploration engineering for Shell before retiring in 1968. They moved to Bay St. Louis for the small-town atmosphere, scenic beauty and so Laurent could paint and fish.
Although he worked as an engineer and draftsman for nearly 40 years, most people in Bay St. Louis knew Laurent for his highly-detailed, photographic-quality oil paintings. Though he could paint portraits that would make an Old Master jealous, in his peak years during the 1970s and '80s, Laurent produced
Oil on canvas of a New Orleans neighborhood.
Oil on canvas of the historic Hancock County Courthouse.
Oil on canvas of the historic L&N Train Depot in Bay St. Louis.