CUNY Newswire

March 17, 2010 | Queensborough Community College

Exhibit Marks the First Public Showing of Simmons’

Extensive African Art Collection

Well-known abstract painter and sculptor Daniel “Danny” Simmons, Jr., will exhibit his artwork and entire African art collection at Queensborough’s QCC Art Gallery when House of The Spirit opens on Friday, March 19, 2010 at 5:00PM. The exhibit will run through May 7, 2010.

Mr. Simmons’ show will consist of his oil paintings and mixed media projects, inspired by his extensive African art collection of spiritual objects from the sub-Saharan region of the continent, which will also be on display.

“His passion for the rich tradition of African art, contrasted with his playful approach to painting—you can almost hear the sweeping sounds of Mr. Simmons’ brush on canvas—compliment our permanent African Art collection nicely,” says Faustino Quintanilla, Curator and Executive Director of the QCC Art Gallery. “Our entire community—especially our students—will enjoy his vibrant form of artistic expression.”

“I went to Cardozo High School and spent a lot of time at Queensborough, so it is an honor to return years later and be recognized for my art,” commented Mr. Simmons. “This exhibit is the first public showing of my entire African art collection, which is very precious to me, and knowing the QCC Art Gallery has the third most important African art collection in New York City, next to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Brooklyn Museum, is astounding.”

Mr. Simmons is the co-founder and chairman of Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, which provides disadvantaged youth with arts access and education. As part of Rush Philanthropic, he also founded Rush Arts Gallery and the Corridor Gallery for aspiring artists. He established, along with his brother Russell, Def Poetry Jam, a long-running series on HBO. He is the author of Three Days as the Crow Flies (Simon & Schuster 2004), a fictional account of the 1980s art scene, and I Dreamed My People Were Calling But I Couldn’t Find My Way Home (2007).

Queensborough, located on a picturesque 37-acre site in Bayside, Queens, offers a rich liberal arts and science curriculum, as well as career and pre-professional courses. Over half of the faculty holds doctorates compared with 21% of faculty in other community colleges nationwide. Comprising one of the most diverse populations of any college in the U.S., more than 15,000 students pursue an Associate degree or Certificate program and another 10,000 students of all ages attend continuing education programs. Among the campus’s prized resources are the Kupferberg Holocaust Resource Center, the QCC Art Gallery, and the Queensborough Performing Arts Center (QPAC), created to stimulate ideas and intellectual curiosity while exposing students and the public to culture and the arts. Please visit our website at qcc.cuny.edu.

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