Bio

Jacob Evan Smith is a Detroit-based connector, community organizer, and visual artist. He is a lifelong Michigander, graduated from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and has lived in Detroit since 2012.

In his role as Community Director for Altimetrik, a global technology firm headquartered in Michigan, Smith runs a digital business accelerator program called Collider in downtown Detroit. He produces and/or hosts a number of recurring community projects, including the Coalition Series, connecting Black and/or Jewish Detroiters over food, art, and music; The Returning Citizen, a success storytelling platform for the formerly incarcerated; and various panels and workshops encouraging productively uncomfortable conversations about othering and belonging within the Metro-Detroit community.

As a visual artist, his practice is rooted in interactive design that invites adults to play. His work has been featured at several galleries, including 46 Gallery in Pontiac and Disco Walls in Hamtramck. Several of his illustrations were published in the book Tear Drops and Balloons by singer/songwriter Mike Posner.