MOCA_LA_Simpson_2006_07_Cloudscape

Lorna Simpson

Biography

Born

Brooklyn NY, 1960

Education

University of California, San Diego CA, 1985

School of Visual Arts, New York NY, 1982

Solo Exhibitions

2025

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 'Lorna Simpson. Source Notes', New York NY 

2024

Hauser & Wirth, 'Lorna Simpson. Earth & Sky', New York NY 

Group Exhibitions

2025

North Carolina Museum of Art, 'The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure', Raleigh NC (Traveling exhibition) 
Bourse de Commerce, 'Corps et âmes', Paris, France 
Sharjah Art Foundation, 'Sharjah Biennial 16: to carry', Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

2024

Whitney Museum of American Art, 'Edges of Ailey', New York NY
Eastman Museum, 'Life with Photographs: 75 Years of the Eastman Museum', Rochester NY
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 'Flight into Egypt: Black Artists and Ancient Egypt, 1876–Now', New York NY
MoMA Museum of Modern Art, 'Vital Signs. Artists and the Body', New York NY 

Philadelphia Museum of Art, 'The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure', cur. Ekow Eshun, Philadelphia PA (Traveling exhibition) 

Water Street Projects, 'YES, CHEF', cur. Zoe Lukov, New York NY 

The Norton Museum of Art, 'Cut Up/Cut Out: Photomontage and Collage', West Palm Beach FL 

Sharjah Biennial 16, cur. Natasha Ginwala, Amal Khalaf, Zeynep Öz, Alia Swastika, Megan Tamati-Quennell, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates 

The Phillips Collection, 'Multiplicity: Blackness in Contemporary American Collage', Washington DC (Traveling exhibition) 

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, ‘This Morning, This Evening, So Soon: James Baldwin and the Voices of Queer Resistance', Washington DC 

Museum Folkwang, 'Grow it, show it! A look at hair from Diane Arbus to TikTok', Essen, Germany 

The Whitney Museum of American Art, 'Edges of Ailey', New York NY 

Metropolitan Museum of Art, 'Fight into Egypt: Black Artists and Ancient Egypt, 1876–Now', New York NY 

Museum of Fine Arts Houston, 'Multiplicity: Blackness in Contemporary American Collage', Houston TX (Traveling exhibition) 

Hauser & Wirth, 'RETROaction', cur. Kate Fowle, Homi K. Bhabha, Charles Gaines, Ellen Tani, Los Angeles CA (Traveling exhibition) 

Fotomuseum Winterthur, 'A Show of Affection, Collection Constellation 1', Winterthur, Switzerland 

Albertina Museum, '20 Years Verbund Collection', Vienna, Austria 

Hauser & Wirth, 'The Flesh of the Earth', cur. Enuma Okoro, New York NY 

Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia University, 'Growing Sideways: Performing Childhood', New York NY 

National Portrait Gallery, 'The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure', cur. Ekow Eshun, London, UK (Traveling exhibition) 

Brooklyn Museum, Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys, Brookyln NY 

Public & Special Projects

1988

Public Art Fund, 'Lorna Simpson: Messages to the Public: Tricks Are For...', New York NY

Awards & Grants

2021

American Academy of Arts and Letters Member, New York NY

2018

J. Paul Getty Medal, Los Angeles CA

Whitney Museum of American Art Gala Honoree, New York NY

Medal Award, School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, Medford MA

Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts, University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Philadelphia PA

Lectures & Talks

2021

Art Center, 'Graduate Art Seminar: Lorna Simpson', Pasadena CA

2018

CSS Bard Center for Curatorial Studies and Hessel Museum of Art, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY

Columbia University, Visiting Artist Lecture Series, New York NY

Bibliography

Monographs

2021

Golden, Thelma, Jone, Kellie, Iles, Christine (et al.), 'Lorna Simpson', London: Phaidon, 2021, ill.

2018

Alexander, Elizabeth, 'Lorna Simpson: Collages', San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2018, ill.

Artist's Books & Writings

1982

Simpson, Lorna, 'Untitled', in: Racism Is the Issue, special issue of the publication 'Heresies', New York, no. 15, 1982, p. 27, ill.

Publications

2025

Anastas, Rhea, Gaines, Charles, James, Jamillah (eds.), 'The Theater of Refusal: Black Art and Mainstream Criticism', Brooklyn: Dancing Foxes Press, 2025, ill.

Gumpert, Lynn, Princenthal, Nancy, Sretenović, Vesela (et al.), 'Anonymous Was A Woman. The First 25 Years', New York: Grey Art Museum, New York University and Hirmer Publishers, 2025, p. 286, ill. (exh. cat.)

2024

Zuckerman, Heidi, 'Why Art Matters. The Bearable Lightness of Being', Costa Mesa CA: OCMA Press, 2024, pp. 370, 413, ill.
Fotomuseum Winterthur (eds.), 'Der Sammlung zugeneight. Konstellation 2', Winterthur: Fotomuseum Winterthur, pp. 42-43, ill. (exh. cat.) 

Stadler, Eva Maria, Tischer, Jenni (eds.), 'Abstraction & Economy. Myths of Growth', Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH, 2024, pp. 205-216, ill. 

Pietropaolo, Francesco (ed.), Storr, Robert, 'Focal Points. Between a Rock and a Hard Place', London: Heni Publishing, pp. 23, 68, 2024, ill. 

Bolin, Clara, Gassert, Doris, Lützen, Christopher (et al.), 'Der Summlung zugeneight. Konstellation 1', Winterthur: Fotomuseum Winterthur, 2024, unpag., ill. 

Bettin, Miriam, Museum Folkwang Essen (ed.), 'Grow It, Show It! A look at hair from Diane Arbus to TikTok', Essen: Museum Folkwang, Berlin: Distanz, 2024, pp. 328-329, ill. (exh. cat.)­

Eshun, Ekow, 'Reframing the Black Figure. An Introduction to Contemporary Black Figuration', London: National Portrait Gallery, 2024, pp. 99-101, ill. (exh. cat.)

Press

2025

Mooallen, Stephen, 'Lorna Simpson Is Living in the Moment', on: harpersbazzar.com, 20 March 2025, ill.

Davies, Lucy, 'Lorna Simpson' [interview], in: The Gentlewoman Magazine, London, Issue no. 31, Spring/Summer 2025, pp. 152-163, ill.

Kazanjian, Dodie, 'Another World', in: Vogue Magazine, New York City, March 2025 issue, pp. 208-214, ill.

Hopkins, Zoë, 'Worldly Ripples of a Cosmic Event' [review], in: The New York Times, New York, 3 January 2025, p. C9, ill.

Hopkins, Zoë, 'At Lorna Simpson’s Show, a Constellation of Galactic and Human History' [review], on: nytimes.com, 2 January 2025, ill.
Abdallah, Yasmeen, 'Art Spiel Picks for January 2025: The Earthly and Celestial in Manhattan', on: artspiel.org, 2 January 2025, ill.

2024

Schrader, Adam, Chen, Min, Whiddington, Richard (et al.), 'From a Ruth Asawa Survey to a Van Gogh Spotlight—13 U.S. Museum Shows You Can’t Miss in 2025', on: news.artnet.com, 31 December 2024, ill.
Stewart, Alison (host), '100 Pieces of Art with Thelma Golden' [audio podcast episode], in: 'All Of It Segments', New York: WNYC, 7 November 2024

Wilson, Abbie, 'Lorna Simpson Debuts a New Body of Work at Hauser & Wirth New York', on: ourculturemag.com, 28 October 2024, ill.
Baquet, Dean, 'Lorna!', in: The New York Times Style Magazine [The Greats feature], 20 October 2024, pp. 99-105, ill.
Nelson, Franklin, 'Look back, move forward', in: Financial Times, London, 28 June 2024, p. 15, ill. 

___, 'Effetto notte, l’arte contemporanea americana a Roma. Oltre 150 opere di 135 artisti a Palazzo Barberini', on: ilsole24ore.com, 13 April 2024, ill. 

Cumming, Laura, 'The Time Is Always Now: Soulscapes review – the Black figure reframed to momentous effect', on: theguardian.com, 25 February 2024, ill. 

Tillmanns, Urs, 'Das Fotomuseum Winterthur zeigt in der Fotostiftung ihre Sammlung', on: fotointern.ch, 12 February 2024, ill. 

Westall, Mark, 'Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beats and Alicia Keys', on: fadmagazine.com, 8 January 2024, ill. 

Audiovisuals

2022

Artforum, 'Simone White and Lorna Simpson', 5 October 2022

WNYC News, 'Weekend Arts Planner: Lots of new exhibitions, the return of Afropunk and Roxy Music at MSG' [Lorna Simpson’s New York exhibition is discussed], 10 September 2022