He is known for his wildlife sculptures as well as his depictions of well-known figures, including Charles Darwin, Ian Fleming, and Alfred Russel Wallace.

[9] The life-sized statue was unveiled by Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (then-Chancellor of the University) and was subsequently shortlisted for the Marsh Award for Excellence in Public Sculpture 2009.

This involved re-sailing Darwin's famous voyage aboard HMS Beagle, using the Dutch tall ship Stad Amsterdam.

The voyage began in August 2009 and lasted eight months, with Smith as one of the show's presenters, discussing Darwin as well as the work of HMS Beagle's artist Conrad Martens.

[14] In 2013 he sculpted a seven-foot tall statue of the 19th century naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace for the Natural History Museum, London.

[16] He states that his skills come from his studies of zoology, as well as the works of other artists such as Rembrandt Bugatti, Auguste Rodin, and François Pompon.