Joe Simpson (born 4 May 1984) is an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
figurative
painter
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
based in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. His work is influenced by
cinematography
Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography.
Cinematographers use a lens to focu ...
to create frozen scenes detached from a wider context. His work has been shown internationally, including in the
National Portrait Gallery,
The Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no governm ...
,
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
, Air Gallery, The Hospital (Covent Gardens) and
Manchester Art Gallery
Manchester Art Gallery, formerly Manchester City Art Gallery, is a publicly owned art museum on Mosley Street in Manchester city centre. The main gallery premises were built for a learned society in 1823 and today its collection occupies three c ...
.
In 2009 Simpson’s first major exhibition ‘Almost There’ launched. Simpson collaborated with twelve bands and solo artists (including
The Miserable Rich
The Miserable Rich are a string-led band, formed in 2007 and based in Brighton, England. The band has a chamber orchestra sound, created using cello and violin as the primary lead instruments, augmented by double bass, acoustic guitar and occasion ...
,
Nizlopi
Nizlopi were an English folk and alternative duo formed in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, by Luke Concannon on vocals, guitar, and bodhrán, and John Parker on double bass, human beatbox, and backing vocals.
History Formation
The duo grew up i ...
, The Voluntary Butler Scheme,
New Cassettes
New Cassettes were an English five piece indie rock band from Northampton, England, formed in 2005.
History
New Cassettes were a five-piece band formed in 2005. The band's debut album 'The Art of...' was released in 2009, with second album '' ...
and Jose Vanders) to create a series of paintings that have an accompanying original soundtrack. Each painting had a song written specifically for that piece, inspired by the scene and composed to complement the mood of the image. The paintings were exhibited with headphones beside them, so that you could simultaneously listen to the music and view the image. The visual and audio components come together to create one new piece of art.
In 2011 Simpson produced a series of portraits of famous musicians, with subject including
Brandon Flowers
Brandon Richard Flowers (born June 21, 1981) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and philanthropist, best known as the lead singer, keyboardist, and occasional bassist of the Las Vegas-based rock band the Killers.
In addition to his w ...
,
Mark Ronson
Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. He is best known for his collaborations with artists such as Duran Duran, Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lady Gaga, Lily Allen, Robbi ...
,
Ezra Koenig
Ezra Michael Koenig ( ; born April 8, 1984) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, producer, and internet radio personality. He is best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of indie rock band Vampire Weekend. Additio ...
(
Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend is an American rock band from New York City, formed in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson, ...
),
Maxi Jazz
Maxwell Fraser (14 June 1957 – 23 December 2022), better known by his stage name Maxi Jazz, was a British musician, rapper, singer, songwriter and DJ. He was the lead vocalist of British electronic band Faithless from 1995 to 2011 and 2015 t ...
(
Faithless
Faithless are an English band that formed in 1995, with its core members being Rollo, Sister Bliss and Maxi Jazz. Their first album, '' Reverence'', was released in 1996 and their most recent, ''All Blessed'', in 2020. They have sold millions ...
),
Paloma Faith
Paloma Faith Blomfield (born 21 July 1981) is an English singer and actress. Her debut studio album, ''Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?,'' was released in 2009 and was certified double platinum in the UK. The album spawned the sing ...
, Matt Berninger (
The National), Sam Beam (
Iron & Wine
Samuel "Sam" Ervin Beam (born July 26, 1974), better known by his stage name Iron & Wine, is an American singer-songwriter. He has released six studio albums, several EPs and singles, as well as a few download-only releases, which include a ...
) and
Jamie Cullum
Jamie Cullum (born 20 August 1979) is an English jazz-pop singer, songwriter and radio presenter. Although primarily a vocalist and pianist, he also accompanies himself on other instruments, including guitar and drums. He has recorded nine stu ...
. The exhibition launched in a pop up in Soho and then was displayed as a solo exhibition at
The Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no governm ...
. Simpson's portrait of
Maxi Jazz
Maxwell Fraser (14 June 1957 – 23 December 2022), better known by his stage name Maxi Jazz, was a British musician, rapper, singer, songwriter and DJ. He was the lead vocalist of British electronic band Faithless from 1995 to 2011 and 2015 t ...
(
Faithless
Faithless are an English band that formed in 1995, with its core members being Rollo, Sister Bliss and Maxi Jazz. Their first album, '' Reverence'', was released in 1996 and their most recent, ''All Blessed'', in 2020. They have sold millions ...
) was shortlisted for the
BP Portrait Award
The BP Portrait Award is an annual portraiture competition held at the National Portrait Gallery in London, England. It is the successor to the John Player Portrait Award. It is the most important portrait prize in the world, and is reputedly ...
and exhibited at
The National Portrait Gallery.
His next major series of paintings was titled 'Across America' and depicted scenes from the artist's trip in the United States. The paintings were exhibited at
Reuben Colley Fine Arts in Birmingham in 2013.
Since 2014 Simpson has been working on a new project entitled 'Act', where he is painting a series of British actors in their dream role. He is asking each actor, 'what role have you always wanted to play but have never got the chance?' and then he creates a narrative painting depicting them playing that part. These roles may be from scripts that never got made, or characters from novels or plays that they would love to play, or any other interpretations of the question. So far he has painted
Paddy Considine
Patrick George Considine (born 5 September 1973) is an English actor, director, and screenwriter. He frequently collaborates with filmmaker/director Shane Meadows. He has received two British Academy Film Awards, three Evening Standard Britis ...
,
Warwick Davis
Warwick Ashley Davis (born 3 February 1970) is an English actor. He played the title character in ''Willow'' (1988) and the ''Leprechaun'' film series (1993–2003), several characters in the ''Star Wars'' film series (1983–2019), most nota ...
,
Michael Sheen
Michael Christopher Sheen OBE (born 5 February 1969) is a Welsh actor, television producer and political activist. After training at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), he worked mainly in theatre throughout the 1990s with stage role ...
,
Olivia Colman
Sarah Caroline Sinclair ( Colman; born 30 January 1974), known professionally as Olivia Colman, is an English actress. Known for her comedic and dramatic roles in film and television, she has received various accolades, including an Academy A ...
, Eleanor Tomlinson and
Matt Lucas
Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He is best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series '' Little Britain'' (2003–2006, 2020) and '' Come Fly ...
for the series.
Image:Joe_Simpson_Painting.jpg, Oil on Canvas 2007
References
External links
Joe Simpson Official WebsiteNME - Joe Simpson's Paintings of Rock StarsPitchfork Review 'Ezra Koenig, Matt Berninger, Sam Beam Immortalized in Oil Paintings' 2011*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20111222095913/http://blog.topman.com/2011/10/musician-portraits-by-joe-simpson.html Topman Contribute - Musician Portraits by Joe Simpsonbr>
Under The Radar 'Popular Musicians and Songwriters Become Oil Paintings' 2011BBC Manchester Feature 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simpson, Joe
1984 births
Living people
20th-century English painters
English male painters
21st-century English painters
People from Lancaster, Lancashire
20th-century English male artists
21st-century English male artists