Meet the Artist: Lorna Simpson at the Hirshhorn Museum
Friday, January 6, 2006
Media only:
Gabriel M. Einsohn (202) 633-2822, einsohng@si.edu
Public only:
www.hirshhorn.si.edu (202) 633-1000
Meet the Artist: Lorna Simpson at the Hirshhorn Museum
The Hirshhorn Museum presents Meet the Artist: Lorna Simpson on Thurs., Jan. 26, at 7 p.m. Working primarily in photography and film, Simpson first gained prominence in the 1980s with her poetic yet provocative combinations of photographic details of black women’s bodies with fragmented texts. For the Meet the Artist series, Simpson will discuss her recent projects, including her work in film.
In 1993, Simpson became the first African-American woman ever to show in the Venice Biennale. Simpson was a finalist for the Guggenheim Foundation’s prestigious Hugo Boss Prize in 1998 and has exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions around the world. In addition to the Hirshhorn Museum, her work is included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Whitney Museum of Art, New York; and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1960, Simpson was greatly influenced by the civil rights movement and books by African Americans about their struggle for equality, which solidified her early interest in human rights-a central theme in her artwork today. She earned a bachelor’s degree in photography from the School of Visual Arts in New York in 1983 and a master’s degree in visual arts from the University of California in San Diego in 1985. Simpson began her career as a documentary photographer, recording images from her environment, but eventually shifted to conceptual photography and film.
Meet the Artist: Lorna Simpson is free and open to the public. Seating in the Ring Auditorium is limited and available on a first-come basis. For more information call (202) 633-1000 or visit www.hirshhorn.si.edu.
Support for Meet the Artist programs is provided through the generosity of the Steven and Heather Mnuchin Foundation.
Three of the artist’s photograph/text pieces recently entered the Hirshhorn’s collection, underscoring the museum’s commitment to enhancing its collection of photography, film and video. The works are currently on view on the museum’s second level.
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Smithsonian’s museum of international modern and contemporary art, encompasses some 11,500 paintings, sculptures, mixed media installations and works on paper. The Hirshhorn maintains an active exhibition program and offers an array of free public programs that explore the art of our time. The museum, located at Independence Avenue and Seventh Street S.W., is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25), and admission is free.
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