Lorna Simpson on Black Archives, Ice, and Resistance in Venice Retrospective
Lorna Simpson made history in 1990 as the first African American woman to showcase her work at the Venice Biennale. Her inaugural European retrospective, titled "Third Person," is currently on display at Punta della Dogana in Venice. Curated alongside Emma Lavigne, the exhibition highlights pieces from the past 15 years, such as "Woman on Snowball" (2018) and "Black Totem," which consists of more than 700 issues of "Ebony" magazine from the 1940s to the early 1980s. Addressing climate change, Simpson's "Ice Series" (initiated in 2017) incorporates local stone and obsidian quartz bowls for communal sound. Collaborating with artists like Esperanza Spalding, her 2004 video "Cloudscape" features a Tuskegee choir, while new works explore themes of reading as resistance in light of US book bans, engaging with Afrofuturism and critiquing outdated gender norms.
Key facts
- Lorna Simpson is the first African American woman to exhibit at the Venice Biennale (1990).
- Her first European retrospective 'Third Person' is at Punta della Dogana, Venice.
- The exhibition includes 'Woman on Snowball' (2018), a sculpture of a crouching Black woman on a giant snowball.
- 'Black Totem' consists of over 700 issues of 'Ebony' magazine from the 1940s to early 1980s.
- The 'Ice Series' uses manipulated archival images of icebergs and glaciers from the past 100 years.
- Works are displayed on local reddish-gray stone, with obsidian quartz singing bowls for visitors.
- Simpson collaborated with musician Esperanza Spalding for a concert at Punta della Dogana.
- The video 'Cloudscape' (2004) was made with Terry Adkins and features reversed whistling.
- New works for Venice revisit 'Woman Reading L.A.' (1998), emphasizing reading as resistance.
- Simpson uses a blue paint containing violet, brown, and black tones.
- She cites Sun Ra and Octavia Butler as influences related to Afrofuturism.
- Simpson states that societal gender structures remain archaic and 'stuck in the past.'
Entities
Artists
- Lorna Simpson
- David Hammons
- Jason Moran
- Esperanza Spalding
- Terry Adkins
- John Coltrane
- Sun Ra
- Octavia Butler
- Asa Smith
- John H. Johnson
Institutions
- Punta della Dogana
- Palazzo Grassi
- Pinault Collection
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Hauser & Wirth
- Venice Biennale
Locations
- Venice
- Italy
- New York
- United States
- Birmingham
- Alabama
- Arctic