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Laurie Simmons

Summary

Laurie Simmons (born October 3, 1949) is an American artist, photographer and filmmaker. Since the mid-1970s, Simmons has staged scenes for her camera with dolls, ventriloquist dummies, objects on legs, and people, to create photographs that reference domestic scenes.[1][2]: 9  She is part of The Pictures Generation, a name given to a group of artists who came to prominence in the 1970s. The Pictures Generation also includes Cindy Sherman, Barbara Kruger, and Louise Lawler.

Laurie Simmons
Born (1949-10-03) October 3, 1949 (age 74)
Far Rockaway, Queens,
New York, U.S.
EducationTyler School of Art
OccupationPhotographer
SpouseCarroll Dunham
Children
WebsiteLaurieSimmons.net

Early life edit

Simmons was born in Far Rockaway, Queens, New York, the daughter of Dorothy "Dot" Simmons, a housewife, and Samuel Ira "Sam" Simmons, a dentist.[3][4][5] Her parents were both Jewish[6][7][8] and she was raised in a Jewish community.[9][10][11]

Simmons received a BFA from Tyler School of Art in 1971.[12]

Career edit

Photography edit

Early black and white (1976) edit

Simmons’ first mature works, shot in 1976, were black-and-white images taken in a dollhouse, un-peopled variations on each room in the house, particularly the bathroom, using sunlight and different angles to create a “dazzling, dreamlike stage set.”[13] She then added a housewife doll into a kitchen set and "photographed the figure over and over in various positions — standing and sitting at the table, at the counter, in a corner, standing on her head with the kitchen in disarray. The mood is dramatically different than in the bathroom views."[13][14]

Black Series edit

For the Black Series, Simmons constructed spare rooms with dollhouse furniture and replicas of iconic, easily recognizable artworks. Simmons considered the photographs of these interior spaces her strongest work at the time.[15]

Early Color Interiors (1978) edit

In 1978, Simmons began shooting the figures in the dollhouse in color, to create the "Early Color Interiors" series. At that time, color photography was "more commonly associated with the artifice of commercial photography while black-and-white was perceived to be more truthful. By using the techniques and processes identified with advertising, fashion, and film, Simmons linked her work to a realm of suspended belief--the realm of fantasy and fiction that sustained many of her memories and longings."[13][16]

Cowboys edit

After much interest in her Early Color Interiors, Simmons began searching for new subject matter and decided to photograph a set of cowboy figures that belonged to Carroll Dunham.[15] The cowboys were on horseback in an unrestrained outdoor environment, shot in a style reminiscent of television Westerns.[13]

Water Ballet (1979–1981) edit

In 1979, Simmons began photographing dolls in a fish tank and eventually floating underwater in a full-sized pool. During this process, she turned her underwater camera to real people swimming. The result was "Water Ballet," a series that developed as Simmons choreographed underwater movements for her friends and photographed their interpretations.[13][17]

Color Coordinated Interiors (early 1980s) edit

In the early 1980s, she created the series "Color-Coordinated Interiors", which used Japanese dolls called Teenettes, monochrome toys of women who Simmons photographed in front of rear projection images of interior decorated rooms.[13] The dolls matched the color theme of the rooms.

Tourism (1984) edit

The series that followed was "Tourism," in 1984, which also used the "Teenette" dolls, but showed them in groups visiting famous places around the world, including the Eiffel Tower, the Pyramids, the Parthenon, and the Taj Mahal.[13] This series investigated the mediation of these places through photography and media instead of real experience. "She used the same strategy to shoot the "Tourism" series as she used for the "Color-Coordinated Interiors," populating unrealistically pristine postcard views with her dolls via rear projection. The figures are color-cued to the background scene, which was often unintentionally monochromatic due owing to the poor quality of the slide."[13] The slides were collected by Simmons from tourist shops and museum collections.[13]

Talking Objects (1987) edit

In 1987, Simmons visited the Vent Haven Museum in Kentucky and over a period of a few years photographed various dummies and props there, resulting in the "Talking Objects" series.[18]

Walking and Lying Objects (1987–1991) edit

Simmons began using objects on legs in her series "Walking & Lying Objects" from the late 1980s. The first work in this series is a work from 1987 titled "Walking Camera I (Jimmy the Camera)," of Simmons's friend and former roommate, the late artist Jimmy De Sana, wearing an old-fashioned box camera costume.[19] The photographs that follow use miniatures and small doll legs. "As she animates the objects, Simmons plays out various roles," wrote curator Jan Howard in an essay accompanying Simmons' retrospective at the Baltimore Museum of Art. "Her transformed women parade across a simulated stage as if in a fashion show or a musical, wearing the accoutrements with which they are identified."[13]

Clothes Make the Man edit

This series of male dummy sculptures were made in collaboration with figure maker Alan Semok. The seven dummies were identical, differentiated only by their clothes and subtitles.[13] Simmons stated that the series "...was just about these minute differences in the way we look or the way we act that make us feel like we’re so profoundly different."[20]

Café of the Inner Mind edit

Simmons later took a more critical look at the dummies, photographing them in environments and using collage to interject their thoughts or visualizations. Much like the ventriloquists she had seen as a child, Simmons gave the dummies a dialogue based on her own projections.[13] According to Simmons, "the dummy is such a metaphor for lying and telling the truth. The way the ventriloquist is able to say whatever he or she wants to say, through this other character. You don’t have to take responsibility for anything that you’re saying because the dummy said it or the dummy did it. It made me think about a lot of things, from news-casting to public speakers to politicians to friends."[20]

Kaleidoscope House (2001) edit

In 2001, Simmons collaborated with architect Peter Wheelwright to design an interactive modernist dollhouse called the "Kaleidoscope House."[21] The house was decorated with miniature artwork and furniture by contemporary artists and designers.[22] In the artistic statement for the project, Laurie Simmons and Peter Wheelwright wrote: "The Kaleidoscope House came out of our shared interests in domesticity and in particular the changing practices of home and family. Our individual work in photography and architecture has focused on these issues, and the promptings of our respective children have often figured in our thinking. Clearly, there is a need for a new dollhouse in the family playroom. Our hope is that The Kaleidoscope House with its sliding transparencies and changing aspects will give a colorful view into playful new possibilities."[23] The Kaleidoscope House has become somewhat of a cult collector's item, and the house and accessories can still be found on e-commerce websites.

The Instant Decorator (2001) edit

Also in 2001, Simmons began her "Instant Decorator" series, which was based on a 1976 interior decorating book of the same name, that provided templates of household rooms for the client to fill with swatches of fabric and paint samples. The series features works that are collage-like and opulently filled with accessories and characters in dramatic mises en scène.[24]

The Love Doll (2009) edit

In 2009, Simmons began a new series called "The Love Doll," featuring a life-size doll from Japan. This series documents the ongoing days in the doll's life.[25]

Kigurumi, Dollers, and How We See edit

After exploring dolls on a life size scale, Simmons discovered a type of Japanese costume play called animegao kigurumi in which participants become doll-like characters by dressing in masks and bodysuits. Simmons presented this transformative social experience and related it to humanity's relationship with social media.[26]

Film edit

In 2006, Simmons made her first film, The Music of Regret. The film is thought to be an extension of her photographs, bringing her objects to life by involving musicians, professional puppeteers, Alvin Ailey dancers, Hollywood cinematographer Ed Lachman, and actress Meryl Streep.[20] This three-act musical creates a narrative between iconic objects found in her photographs.[27][28]

Simmons starred in a feature-length film by her daughter Lena Dunham, called Tiny Furniture, which was filmed in 2009 and was featured at the South by Southwest film festival in 2010. Simmons' character, Siri, was based loosely on herself. The film won various awards in 2010, including the Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature, the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association's New Generation Awards, and the Sarasota Film Festival's Independent Visions Award. It was nominated for Gotham Awards for best Ensemble Performance, and Breakthrough Director.[29][30]

Fashion edit

In 2008, Simmons collaborated with the designer Thakoon Panichgul to create fabrics for his Spring 2009 line. The pattern featured a variation on Simmons' series "Walking & Lying Objects" from the late eighties, which involved various objects that are animated with legs in different positions. The fabric for Thakoon's line was based on legs paired with a rose.[31]

Simmons also collaborated with Peter Jensen on his 2010 spring collection. Jensen photographed models in poses directed by Simmons based on images from fashion magazines in the '60s and '70s. The resulting photographs were then cut into paper dolls, dressed in a miniature version of Jensen's spring collection, and placed inside Simmons’ typical dollhouse tableaus. The book of photographs was released for London Fashion Week 2009.[32]

Feminism edit

Much of Simmons' work concerns the role of women in society. Her 'objects on legs' photos feature consumer items such as dollhouses, cakes, guns and musical instruments with long, slender legs, intending to make a statement on traditional gender roles.[33] In 1972, Simmons discovered a vintage dollhouse in the attic of a toy store in Liberty, New York. This was during the second wave of feminism, and dolls were viewed skeptically by many who claimed that the toys supported subtle domestic indoctrination for young girls. Simmons was drawn to the strange, strongly gendered appeal of dolls and dollhouses and began photographing them.[34]

In a March 2014 interview, Simmons stated, "When I picked up a camera with a group of other women, I'm not going to say it was a radical act, but we were certainly doing it in some sort of defiance of, or reaction to, a male-dominated world of painting."[33]

In popular culture edit

Simmons made a guest appearance on Gossip Girl in 2011 to make a portrait of the van der Woodsen family in a style that resembled her Interior Decorator series from 2001.[35]

Brooklyn-based performance collective, Carroll Simmons, takes their name from combining Simmons' last name with her husband, Carroll Dunham's first.[36]

Personal life edit

Simmons lives and works in New York City[37] and Cornwall, Connecticut with her husband, painter Carroll Dunham. They have two children, actress and writer Lena Dunham and writer/activist Cyrus Grace Dunham.[37]

Exhibitions edit

Selected solo exhibitions
Selected group exhibitions
  • 2000: Open Ends: Minimalism and After – Museum of Modern Art (New York, NY)[40]
  • 2009: ‘The Pictures Generation, 1974 – 1984’ – Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, NY)
  • 2010: ‘Off The Wall: Part 1 – 30 Performative Actions’ – Whitney Museum of American Art (New York, NY)
  • 2011: ‘Pictures by Women: A History of Modern Photography’ – Museum of Modern Art (New York, NY)
Retrospectives
  • 1990: San Jose Museum of Art (San Jose, CA)
  • 1997: The Baltimore Museum of Art (Baltimore, MD)
  • 2012: Gothenburg Museum of Art (Sweden)
  • 2014: The Neues Museum in Nuremberg (Germany)

Collections edit

Honors edit

Filmography edit

  • 2006: The Music of Regret – Producer, Writer, Director
  • 2010: Tiny Furniture – as Siri
  • 2016: My Art – Director, Writer

Works and publications edit

  • Simmons, Laurie (1983). In and Around the House: Photographs, 1976-1979. Buffalo, NY: CEPA. ISBN 978-0-939-78406-6. OCLC 10276353.
  • 鈴木行; Simmons, Laurie; Sherman, Cindy (interview by); Suzuki, Gyoh (1987). AM Corporation (ed.). Laurie Simmons = LS, Laurie Simmons = Rōrī Shimonzu shashinshū (in Japanese and English). Tokyo: Parco. ISBN 978-4-891-94155-0. OCLC 19034862.
  • Simmons, Laurie (1987). Laurie Simmons: Water Ballet/Family Collision. Minneapolis, MN: Walker Art Center. ISBN 978-0-935-64023-6. OCLC 16756308.
  • Simmons, Laurie; Cameron, Dan (1990). Laurie Simmons, San Jose Museum of Art (Exhibition catalog). San Jose, CA: San Jose Museum of Art. ISBN 978-0-938-17510-0. OCLC 922655066. Catalog of an exhibition held at the San Jose Museum of Art, California, October 21-December 30, 1990.
  • Simmons, Laurie; Charlesworth, Sarah (interviewed by) (1994). Bartman, William S.; Sappington, Rodney (eds.). Laurie Simmons. Encino, CA: A.R.T. Press. ISBN 978-0-923-18313-4. OCLC 924758133.
  • Howard, Jan; Simmons, Laurie (1997). Laurie Simmons: The Music of Regret (Exhibition catalog). Baltimore: Baltimore Museum of Art. ISBN 978-0-912-29869-6. OCLC 37424930. Published in conjunction with the exhibition held May 28-August 10, 1997 at the Baltimore Museum of Art
  • Simmons, Laurie; Schorr, Collier (text by) (2002). Laurie Simmons: Photographs 1978/79 (Exhibition catalog). New York, NY: Skarstedt. ISBN 978-0-970-90903-9. OCLC 50475850. Published on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name, May 4-June 29, 2002
  • Simmons, Laurie; Squiers, Carol (texts by) (2003). Laurie Simmons: In and Around the House, Photographs, 1976-78. New York: Carolina Nitsch Editions. ISBN 978-0-974-06660-8. OCLC 53190565.
  • Linker, Kate (2005). Laurie Simmons: Walking, Talking, Lying (1st ed.). New York: Aperture. ISBN 978-1-931-78859-5. OCLC 964632609.
  • Simmons, Laurie (2007). Laurie Simmons: Color Coordinated Interiors 1983 (Exhibition catalog). New York: Skarstedt Fine Art. ISBN 978-0-970-90906-0. OCLC 154788379. Catalog of an exhibition held at Skarstedt Fine Art, New York (September 19 - October 27, 2007) and Sperone Westwater, New York (27 April - 30 June 2006)
  • Simmons, Laurie; Greenberg Rohatyn, Jean (introductory essay by) (2012). Tillman, Lynne (ed.). The Love Doll (Exhibition catalog). New York / Tokyo: Salon 94 / Tomio Koyama. ISBN 978-0-615-59689-1. OCLC 829059684. Published in conjunction with the exhibition "The Love Doll: Days 1-30," in New York, at Salon 94, Feb. 15-Mar. 26, 2011 and in London, at Wilkinson Gallery, June 9-July 10, 2011; "The Love Doll (Geisha): Days 31-36," in Aspen, Colorado, at Baldwin Gallery, Mar. 16-Apr. 15, 2012; and "The Love Doll," in Tokyo, at Tomio Koyama Gallery, in 2013
  • Simmons, Laurie; Nilsson, Isabella; Thorkildsen, Åsmund (2012). Sjöström, Johan (ed.). Laurie Simmons: Red, Yellow and Blue (Exhibition catalog) (in Swedish and English). Gothenburg: The Gothenburg Museum of Art. ISBN 978-91-87968-78-5.

References edit

  1. ^ Chattopadhyay, Piya (10 December 2014). "Photographer Laurie Simmons" (Video interview). Q. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15.
  2. ^ Linker, Kate (2005). Laurie Simmons: Walking, Talking, Lying (1st ed.). New York: Aperture. ISBN 978-1-931-78859-5. OCLC 964632609.
  3. ^ Shattuck, Kathryn (6 July 1997). "'I Like to Imagine People Imagining I'm From Anywhere'". The New York Times.
  4. ^ "This artist's camera does lie". Newsday. 2007-07-01. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  5. ^ "Paid Notice: Deaths. Simmons, Dr. Samuel Ira". The New York Times. 24 November 2001.
  6. ^ Crisell, Luke (January 28, 2015). "Meet Lena Dunham's mother: Laurie Simmons". London Evening Standard. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  7. ^ Lubow, Arthur (April 27, 2018). "Influenced by Her Children, Laurie Simmons Exits Her Comfort Zone". The New York Times. Retrieved July 2, 2018. Especially for her father, who, like her mother, was the child of Jewish immigrants
  8. ^ Goldberg, David (March 31, 2015). "Laurie Simmons' Eye Opening Art". The Jewish Week. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  9. ^ Silverstein, Melissa (2010-11-12), Interview with Lena Dunham – Writer/Director of Tiny Furniture, Women & Hollywood, archived from the original on 2011-06-29, retrieved 2017-01-03
  10. ^ Luers, Erik (January 12, 2018). "'My Art': Lena Dunham's Mom Laurie Simmons Recreates Classic Cinema in Her Directorial Debut". No Film School. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  11. ^ Oliver, Charlotte (May 29, 2014). "Latex doll images inflate the appeal of V&A photographer". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  12. ^ "Laurie Simmons". Tyler School of Art. April 2015.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Howard, Jan; Simmons, Laurie (1997). Laurie Simmons: The Music of Regret (Exhibition catalog). Baltimore: Baltimore Museum of Art. ISBN 978-0-912-29869-6. OCLC 37424930.
  14. ^ "Museum and Gallery Listings; Laurie Simmons: 'In and Around the House'". The New York Times. 20 June 2008.
  15. ^ a b Tomkins, Calvin (10 December 2012). "Onward and Upward with the Arts: A Doll's House". The New Yorker. p. 34.
  16. ^ Kimmelman, Michael (7 June 2002). "Art in Review; Laurie Simmons -- Photographs 1978-79: 'Interiors' and 'Big Figures'". The New York Times.
  17. ^ Simmons, Laurie (1987). Laurie Simmons: Water Ballet/Family Collision. Minneapolis, MN: Walker Art Center. ISBN 978-0-935-64023-6. OCLC 16756308.
  18. ^ Simmons, Laurie; Charlesworth, Sarah (interviewed by) (1994). Bartman, William S.; Sappington, Rodney (eds.). Laurie Simmons. Encino, CA: A.R.T. Press. ISBN 978-0-923-18313-4. OCLC 924758133.
  19. ^ "TateShots: Laurie Simmons – Photography, Film and Lena Dunham". Tate Modern. 7 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15.
  20. ^ a b c [1] art21
  21. ^ Glueck, Grace (24 November 2000). "Art in Review; Laurie Simmons". The New York Times.
  22. ^ "Bozart Toys, The Award Winning Company That Commissions Museum Quality Artists to Create Toys is Pleased to Announce it's [sic] Newest Design, The Kaleidoscope House™ (2001)". PMWArchitects. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  23. ^ "Kaleidoscope House". Laurie Simmons. Laurie Simmons. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  24. ^ Yablonsky, Linda (15 February 2004). "Art; Better, More Surreal Homes and Collages". The New York Times. p. 18.
  25. ^ "The Love Doll: Days 1-30, Salon 94". Salon94.com. Archived from the original on 2011-04-06. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  26. ^ Sanchez, Gabriel, "Laurie Simmons," Artforum, April 2014
  27. ^ "Laurie Simmons's The Music of Regret". MoMA. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  28. ^ Simmons, Laurie (2006). "Episode #147: The Music of Regret". Art:21. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15.
  29. ^ Darren Franich (2010-10-18). "The Gotham Awards nominate 'Winter's Bone,' 'The Kids Are All Right'". Entertainment Weekly.
  30. ^ "Tiny Furniture official website". Tinyfurniture.com. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  31. ^ Lau, Venessa (November 2008). "Rose Land: A collaboration with artist Laurie Simmons blossoms at Thakoon". W Magazine. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  32. ^ [2] Archived January 6, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  33. ^ a b Heti, Sheila (4 March 2014). "Laurie Simmons". Interview Magazine. Dan Ragone. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  34. ^ "Laurie Simmons: Purple Woman/Kitchen/Second View". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Met Publications. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  35. ^ "Laurie Simmons' New Collaborator: Gossip Girl". Style.com. 2011-04-18. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  36. ^ Collins-Hughes, Laura (3 July 2014). "Poking Fun in 'Too Many Lenas 3: Let Them Eat Cake'". The New York Times.
  37. ^ a b "Exhibitions: Laurie Simmons, In and Around the House, Photographs 1976-78". Erna Hecey Gallery. Retrieved 2014-01-30.
  38. ^ a b "Conversation: Laurie Simmons and Marvin Heiferman", Art in America, April 2009, p. 110-121
  39. ^ Kastner, Jeffrey. ""Laurie Simmons: How We See" at The Jewish Museum". Art Forum. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  40. ^ "Exhibitions- 2000". MoMA. MoMA. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  41. ^ "Walking Camera (Jimmy the Camera)". Corcoran. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  42. ^ "The Jewish Museum". thejewishmuseum.org. Retrieved 2018-03-11.
  43. ^ "Laurie Simmons | Woman Watching TV". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  44. ^ "Laurie Simmons". Museum of Contemporary Art. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  45. ^ "Laurie Simmons". Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  46. ^ "Laurie Simmons :water ballet/family collision". NMWA Library & Research Center. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  47. ^ "Laurie Simmons". Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  48. ^ "Laurie Simmons". The Guggenheim Museums and Foundation. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  49. ^ "Laurie Simmons". Walker Art Center. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  50. ^ "Laurie Simmons". Whitney Museum of American Art. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  51. ^ "Laurie Simmons". John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Retrieved 20 March 2023.

Further reading edit

  • "Romance". Art:21. PBS. 28 October 2007.
  • Inside the Artist's Studio, Princeton Architectural Press, 2015. (ISBN 978-1616893040)
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art: http://www.metmuseum.org/TOAH/hd/pcgn/ho_2004.246.htm
  • Interview with Laurie Simmons
  • Artforum Laurie Simmons Scale Models
  • New York Magazine Laurie Simmons Love Doll: Days 1-30

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Laurie Simmons.
  • Laurie Simmons at IMDb

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