Danny Simmons American, b. 1953

Biography

Portrait of artist Danny Simmons in an african textile shirt and bright orange glasses

Danny Simmons, 2022. Photograph by Todd Agostini. Courtesy the artist and Westwood Gallery NYC.

My concept is to place spirit into the creation of my artwork much like indigenous artisans place spirit into inanimate sculpture. My technique is to paint in complete silence and isolation and hopefully allow intellect and spiritual influence to guide my painting.

- Danny Simmons

For over four decades, Danny Simmons (b. 1953) has created paintings, works on paper, and assemblage informed by the spirit imbued in indigenous and African cultures. As the founder of the artistic movement Neo-African Abstract Expressionism, Simmons reclaims traditional African motifs used in modernism through his use of dots, textiles, and tribal markings. Simmons is an author, poet, philanthropist, curator, co-creator of Def Poetry Jam, and co-founder of the renowned Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation. Through the non-profit organization, Rush Arts Gallery NYC and Rush Arts Philadelphia have served as important cultural hubs providing exhibitions, arts education and opportunities for hundreds of emerging, developing and underrepresented artists of color since 1995. Simmons is also a collector of contemporary art and African sculpture.

His artworks are in private and museum collections including the Brooklyn Museum, Houston Museum of African American Culture, Montclair Art Museum, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art, The Smithsonian, Chase Manhattan Bank, United Nations, and other collections.

WESTWOOD GALLERY NYC is the exclusive worldwide representative for artist Danny Simmons.

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