Eric Smith, an Illinois native, has been taking pictures since 1972 and became more serious about it in the 90s. His love of performance photography averages him about two shows a week.

The Bijou Theatre exhibits many performance photographs taken by Smith, including Marcus Roberts, Patti Smith and Chet Atkins.  

Smith also mentioned talk of an exhibit of his photographs at the Tennessee Theatre."I try to introduce them to new and old ideas if they are interested, and try to be a source of encouragement when they need it." -Eric Smith 

At UT, Smith is the assistant director of Student Publications and is the advisor to The Daily Beacon, the Phoenix the literary/arts magazine and Evolve, the Volunteer annual of UT.

"Mostly I work with students in the design, photography and production of these publications; teaching, advising and showing them how to accomplish various tasks," Smith said. He wants to help students reach their goals.