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The Glorious Collages of Lorna Simpson

The Glorious Collages of Lorna Simpson July 3, 2018Art + Design1 Comment Jenna Homen

“Black women’s heads of hair are galaxies unto themselves, solar systems, moonscapes, volcanic interiors. The hair she paints has a mind of its own. It is sinuous and cloudy and fully alive. It is forest and ocean, its own emotional weather.”

—Elizabeth Alexander, from the Introduction of Lorna Simpson Collages

Using advertising photographs of black women (and men) drawn from vintage issues of Ebony and Jet magazines, the exquisite and thought-provoking collages of world-renowned artist Lorna Simpson explore the richly nuanced language of hair. Surreal coiffures made from colorful ink washes, striking geological formations from old textbooks, and other unexpected forms and objects adorn the models to mesmerizingly beautiful effect.

Lorna Simpson Collages features 160 artworks in total, as well as a stunning introduction by poet, author, and scholar Elizabeth Alexander. All in all, it is a wondrous celebration of the power of Simpson’s visual vernacular, and of black women: “Black women are everywhere glorious and unsung.”

Earth & Sky #24, 2016

Earth & Sky #2, 2016

Earth & Sky #9, 2016

Speechless, 2017

A Friend, 2012

Form, 2012

Reignite, 2012

White Roses, 2011

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You can find Lorna Simpson Collages here.

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Jenna Homen

Content and Community Manager at Chronicle Books. When she's logged off, she can be found painting, cooking, camping, or petting her dog Harley. You can follow her on Twitter at @jn_na.