Smith first created an art piece out of a toilet seat when he was a boy. He then decorated 1,300 toilet seats throughout his life. He sold his collection to Jason Boso, owner of Truck Yards. Boso moved the collection to Truck Yard The Colony in 2019 in honor of Smith.
Toilet seats are a great way to display a variety of items. Many of the toilet seats are decorated with paint and other media. Some toilet seats have a unique theme, like the NASA space shuttle Challenger, the Pokemon cards, or car clubs. Other toilet seats capture milestones in the lives of people.
Smith's toilet seat art is a combination of found-object assemblage and scrapbooking. Barney Smith, a retired master plumber, started collecting toilet seats and embellishing them with various objects. He began creating his first piece in 1984. It was inspired by a hunting trophy his father had mounted on a toilet seat.
Smith kept an archival stack of guest books at his home and encouraged visitors to bring their toilet seats to donate to his collection. Smith also hoped to find a collector to purchase and keep his collection together. Smith's daughter has agreed to take over the work once Smith passes away.
