Arthur Simms

Born in 1961 in Kingston, Jamaica, and now based in the United States, Simms has for several decades been developing a distinctive sculptural practice based on the assembly, fastening and tensioning of industrial fragments, domestic objects and organic materials. His structures, often vertical and sometimes totemic, explore the notions of balance, memory and transformation, giving rise to forms that are both fragile and architectural. Building on the legacy of post-war assemblage whilst developing a deeply personal language, Simms transforms materials steeped in use and history into structures where tension, accumulation and balance become vectors of memory and experience.

The artist’s work has been featured in numerous major international events, including the Kingston Biennial (2022) and the Venice Biennale, where he participated in Jamaica’s inaugural pavilion in 2001 and in projects linked to the 2019 edition. Simms has also created several public installations and large-scale interventions in urban spaces, including a floating sculpture presented on the Staten Island waterfront in 2018, an installation at Socrates Sculpture Park in New York, and more recently A Totem for the High Line (2024–2025).

Born in 1961 in Jamaica, lives and works in New York.
 

EDUCATION 

Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, NY
M.F.A. 1993, B.A. 1987
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan, ME, 1985


AWARDS

Emily Harvey Foundation Residency, Venice, Italy, March-May, 2026
Alex Ettl Award for a Work in Sculpture, National Academy of Design, 2024
Inducted into the National Academy of Design, 2022
Irving Sandler Prize, Sharpe-Walentas Studio Program, 2022
New Roots Foundation Residency, Antigua, Guatemala, 2019
Campo Garzon Artist in Residence, Garzon, Uruguay, 2018
S. J. Weiler Fund Award, 2014
Holter Museum, Artist in Residence, 2014
Joan Mitchell Center in New Orleans, Artist in Residence, 2013
Irish Museum of Modern Art Residency, Dublin, Ireland, 2008
The Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award, 2007
New York City Arts in the Parks Commission, 2007
American Academy of Arts and Letters, Academy Award in Art, 2006
Creative Capital Foundation Follow-up Support, 2004-05
New York Foundation For The Arts Fellowship In Sculpture, 2003
Harold M. English/Metropolitan Museum of Art-Jacob H. Lazarus Rome Prize
Fellowship in Visual Arts, American Academy In Rome, 2002-2003
Creative Capital Foundation Follow-up Support, 2002
Salute to Scholars, The City University Of New York, 2002
Creative Capital Foundation Grant, 2001
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, 1999-2000
The Rockefeller Foundation Residency Fellowship Bellagio, Italy, 2000
The Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant, 1997
Franconia Sculpture Park Individual Artist Grant, 1997
The Wheeler Foundation Fellowship, 1995
Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation Space Grant, 1994-95
Queens Council on the Arts Grant, 1994
Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant, 1993
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Scholarship Grant, 1985
Ellen Battell Stoekel Fellowship, Yale Summer School of Music and Art, 1985(declined)
Shaw Memorial Award for Painting, Brooklyn College, 1985, 1984


COMMISSIONS

A Totem for the High Line., The High Line, New York City, August 2024 – July 2025
Real Estate for Birds?, Sculpture Milwaukee 2022, Milwaukee, WI, August 2022 –
August 2025
Float, Float, Float On, Sonic Gates New York City’s Sculpture Walk, Staten Island,
St. George to Stapleton, Staten Island, NY, July 2018 – June 2019
Dreamcatcher IV, It’s Happening! Celebrating 50 Years of Public Art in NYC Parks,
East Pinetum, Central Park, NYC, October, 2017
Real Estate for Birds?, Art in the Parks, Celebrating 40 Years 1967-2007, Prospect
Park, Brooklyn, NY, October- March, 2007-2008
Car Take I Afar, Franconia Sculpture Park, Shafer, Minnesota, September, 1997 –
September 1998
Now Let’s Listen to Another Piece of Advice, Socrates Sculpture Park, Long Island
City, NY, 1994 -1995
 

SOLO AND DUO EXHIBITIONS

2026
- Portrait of a Politician Vomiting, RX&SLAG Paris, Paris, France.
- Caged Bottle, Karma, New York, USA. 
2024
- Arthur Simms : Chair with my hair, Kunstmuseum St. Gallen LOK, St. Gallen, Switzerland.
2023
- Arthur Simms, Art/Basel - Feature Exhibition, Martos Gallery, Basel, Switzerland.
- Arthur Simms, Art/Basel – Unlimited Exhibition, Martos Gallery, Basel, Switzerland.
- The Miracle of Burano, Karma Gallery, Los Angeles, USA. 
- I Am The Bush Doctor, One Halo, San Carlo Cremona, Cremona, Italy.
2022
- Night Fever, One Halo., Martos After Dark, New York City, USA. 
- And I Say, Brother Had A Very Good Day, One Halo, Martos Gallery, New York City, USA. 
2019
- Throughline, Shoot The Lobster NY Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- The Big Picture, One Halo, Sculptures and Drawings by Arthur Simms, Slag Gallery, Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
2016
- Different Roads: Same Destination, Assemblage Sculptures of Randy Wray and Arthur Simms, Dorsky Gallery, Long Island, New York City, USA. 
2014
- Lucy Fradkin and Arthur Simms: Intimate Worlds, Holter Museum of Art : Helena, Montana, USA. 
2011
- Dreamcatchers: Sculptures by Hyong Nam Ahn and Arthur Simms, Amelie A. Wallace Gallery at SUNY College at Old Westbury, Old Westbury, New York City, USA. 
2010
- Arthur Simms, Two Thousand and Ten, Peg Alston Fine Arts Gallery, New York City, USA. 
2009
- Arthur Simms, Clark Gallery, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA. 
2008
- Process Room, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland. 
- Art in the Parks, Celebrating 40 Years 1967-2007, Prospect Park, Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
2007
- Arthur Simms Sculpture and Drawings, Lesley Heller Gallery, New York City, USA. 
2006
- Arthur Simms, Sculptures and Drawings, Westchester Community College Art Gallery, SUNY, Valhalla, New York City, USA. 
2005
- Arthur Simms, Sculptures and Drawings 1989-2005, Five Myles, Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
2004
- Roman Holiday: New Work From A Year Spent In Rome, Lucy Fradkin and Arthur Simms, Kenise Barnes Fine Arts, Larchmont, New York City, USA. 
2003
- Lucy Fradkin e Arthur Simms, Lavori Italiani, Italia Inghilterra, Cagliari, Italy. 
- Arthur Simms and Jonathan Hynd, Temple University Gallery in Rome, Rome, Italy. 
2001
- Drawings, Arthur Simms, Peg Alston Fine Arts, New York City, USA. 
2000
- Arthur Simms And Garry Nichols, Sideshow Gallery, Williamsburg, New York City, USA. 
- Arthur Simms, Assemblage Of The Spirit, York College Art Gallery, New York City, USA. 
1992
- Sculptures, Philippe Briet Gallery, New York City, USA. 


BIENNIALS

2022
- Kingston Biennial, Kingston, Jamaica.
2019
- To Venice with Love: Wall of Offering, Curated by Francesca Pietropaolo & Phong Bui, 58th Venice Biennial, Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Penitenti, Venice, Italy
2003
- Biennale di Arte Contemporanea di Porto Ercole, Forte Stella, Porto Ercole, Italy
2001
- International Exposition Of Art, 49th Venice Biennial, Jamaica Pavilion, Venice, Italy


GROUP EXHIBITIONS 

2026
- ART PARIS, Grand palais, Paris France.
2025
- Duet, Water Street Projects, curated by Kyle DeWoody and Zoe Lukov, New York City, USA. 
- Neu in der Sammlung, Kunstmuseum St. Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland.
- A Certain Form of Hell, Karma, Thomaston, Maine, USA. 
- Past as Prologue: A Historical Acknowledgment (Part 2), National Academy of Design, New York City, USA. 
2024
- Charismatic Goods, CANADA, New York City, USA. 
- 191ST ANNUAL ACADEMY STYLE, National Academy of Design, New York City, USA.
- EFFETTO NOTTE: NUOVO REALISMO AMERICANO, curated by Massimiliano Gioni and Flaminia Gennari Santori Palazzo Barberini, Rome, Italy. 
- Family Affair, The Bunker Artspace, West Palm Beach, Floride, États-Unis.
- The Endowed Chair, The Bunker Artspace, West Palm Beach, Florida, USA. 
2023
- Drunk vs. Stoned 3, The Ranch at The Dock, Montauk, New York City, USA. 
- Basel Social Club, Art Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
- Exercises in Imagination, National Academy of Design, New York City, USA. 
2022
- Mettere Al Mondo, Thomas Dane Gallery, Naples, Italy. 
- Singing in Unison: Artists Need to Create on the Same Scale that Society Has the Capacity to Destroy Part Seven, Industry City, Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
- Nature Doesn’t Know About Us, Sculpture Milwaukee 2022, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. 
- Singing in Unision, Part 4, Ricco Maresca, New York City, USA. 
- Singing in Unision, Part 2, Scully Tomasko Foundation, New York City, USA. 
- Singing in Unision, Part 3, Below Grand, New York City, USA. 
- Caribbean Transitions, American University, Katzen Arts Center, Washington DC, USA. 
- Invitational Exhibition of Visual Arts, American Academy of Arts and Letters.
- Looking Back / The 12th White Columns Annual – Selected by Mary Manning, WhiteColumns Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- SeenUNseen, LA Louver, Venice Beach, Los Angeles, California, USA. 
2021
- Lost & Found, Martos Gallery, New York City, USA. 
2020
- STILL UTOPIA: ISLANDS, Gallery MC, New York City, USA.
Sonic Gates New York City’s Sculpture Walk, Staten Island, St. George to Stapleton, Staten Island, New York City, USA. 
2018
- To Break the Ocean, AC Institute, New York City, USA. 
2017
- It’s Happening! Celebrating 50 Years of Public Art in NYC Parks, East Pinetum, Central Park, New York City, USA. 
2016
- Excavations, Field Projects Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- ARS Continuum: Amelie A. Wallce Gallery 1978 to the Present, Amelie A. Wallace Gallery, SUNY College at Old Westbury, New York City, USA. 
2015
- Rock Hound Swap Meet, Junior Projects, New York City, USA. 
- Working in NYC 27 Artists, 705 Driggs Avenue, Central Connecticut State University Art Gallery, New Britain, Connecticut, USA. 
2014
- The Rule of the Law and the Right to be Human, Athens School Of Art Gallery, Athens, Greece.
- Recontextualizing the Found, The Anya and Andrew Shiva Gallery, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York City, USA. 
2013
- Come Together: Surviving Sandy, Year 1, Industry City, Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
- Invitational Exhibition of Visual Arts, American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York City, USA. 
- Lois Dodd: My Students, The Firehouse Center, 5 Bristol Road, Damariscotta, Maine, USA. 
2012
- Nozomi Rose with 8 Artists from New York, Swan Hill Museum of Contemporary Art, Hyogo, Japan.
- Global Caribbean, Focus sur la Création Contemporaine Caribéenne, Fondation Clément, Habitation Le François – Martinique.
2011
- Toy Story, Rockland Center For The Arts, West Nyack, New York City, USA. 
- Toward a Philosophy of the Everyday, Castle Gallery, College of New Rochelle, NewRochelle, New York City, USA. 
- Drawing From the Collection, LC Bates Museum, Hinckley, Maine, USA. 
- Rock / Paper / Scissors, Clark Gallery, Lincoln, Massachusetts, USA. 
- The Global Caribbean, Focus on the Caribbean Contemporary Landscape, Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
2010
- Global Caraîbes MIAM, Sète, Musée International des Arts Modestes, Sète, France.
- Global Caribbean, The Haitian Cultural Arts Alliance Art Center, Miami, Florida, USA. 
2009
- Party At Chris’s House Janet Kurnatowski Gallery Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
- Playing Around, Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro, Vermont, USA. 
2008
- Person in the Crowd: The Contemporary Art of Flanerie, Neuberger Museum of Art, Purchase, New York City, USA. 
2006
- Infinite Island: Contemporary Caribbean Art, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, New York City, USA.
Newly Elected Members and Recipients of Honors and Awards, American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York City, USA. 
- Invitational Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture, American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York City, USA. 
2005
- Alumni Exhibition: Celebrating the Seventy-Fifth Anniversary of Brooklyn College, Brooklyn College Art Gallery at the Brooklyn War Memorial, New York City, USA. 
- Flavor Intensive: 5 Sculptors, Triangle Arts Association, Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
2003
- Fuoriluogo 8 – Afritalia, Galleria Limiti Inchiusi, Campobasso, Italy. 
- Site/Insight: An Assemblage of Artists (curated by Agnes Gund), P.S.1 MOMA, Long Island City, New York City, USA. 
- Open Studio Exhibition, American Academy in Rome, Rome, Italy. 
2002
- Queens International, Queens Museum of Art, Queens, New York City, USA. 
- On The Tracks: Works By NYC Sculptors, Aurora Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- Jamaican Art, In The Fullness Of Time, Clark University Gallery Of Art, Atlanta, Géorgie, USA. 
- Body Language, Islip Art Museum, East Islip, New York City, USA. 
- Artist to Artist, A Decade of the Space Program, Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation Ace Gallery, New York City, USA.
- Jamaican Art, In The Fullness Of Time, Sidney Mishkin Gallery, Baruch College, CUNY, New York City, USA. 
- Group Show, Skoto Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- Merry, Sideshow Gallery, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City, USA. 
2001
- Jamaican Art, In The Fullness Of Time, Howard University Gallery, Washington DC, USA. 
- Jamaican Art, In The Fullness Of Time, Handwerker Gallery, Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York City, USA. 
- Drawing on Language, Spaces, Cleveland, Ohio, USA. 
- Jamaican Art; In The Fullness Of Time, The Karl Drerup Gallery, Plymouth State College, Plymouth, New Hampshire.
2000
- OPEN 2000, 3rd International Exhibition Of Sculptures And Installations, Venise, Italy. 
- Recess, Kenise Barnes Fine Art, Larchmont, New York City, USA. 
1999
- Group Show, Rush Arts, New York City, USA. 
1998
- Local Color, Henry Street Settlement, New York City, USA. 
- Pay Per It, Sideshow Gallery, Williamsburg, New York City, USA. 
- Making It, The Work Space, New York City, USA. 
- Franconia Sculpture Park, Shafer, Minnesota, USA. 
1997
- New York Drawers, Gasworks, London, England.
- New York Drawers, Corner House, Manchester, England.
- Current Undercurrent: Working in Brooklyn, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn New York City, USA. 
- First Annual, Two Sculptors, Inc., New York City, USA. 
- Gramercy Art Fair, Pierogi 2000, New York City, USA. 
1996
- The January Show, Silverstein Gallery, New York City, USA. 
1995
- New York Soho Biennial, 473 Broadway, New York City, USA. 
- Freaks, The Unnatural History Museum, New York City, USA. 
- Open Studios, The Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation, New York City,  USA. 
1994
- The Box Show, K & E Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- Raw Materials, The Police Building, New York City, USA. 
- Other Visions: Composite, Neuberger Museum of Art, State University of New York at Purchase, New York City, USA. 
- Socrates Sculpture Park, Long Island City, New York City, USA. 
- Le Temps D’un Dessin, Galerie de L’Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Lorient, France.
1993
- Westbeth Gallery, New York City, USA. 
1992
- Expodiscus Part 3, Metropolis Club, New York City, USA. 
- Workspace ‘92, Jamaica Arts Center, Jamaica, New York City, USA. 
- Philippe Briet Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- Domenikos Theotokopoulos: A Dialogue, Philippe Briet Gallery, New York City, USA. 
- Artworks/Artworkers, A/C Project Room, New York City, USA. 
1991
- OIA Salon ‘91 OIA Gallery, New York City, USA.
1990
- Artwork/Artworkers, Brand X Gallery, New York City, USA.