Simon Benjamin is a Jamaican visual artist and filmmaker living in New York.
Education
2021 Hunter College, MFA., New York, NY
2005 School of Visual Arts, BFA., (Honors). New York, NY
2000 University of the West Indies, BSc., Kingston, Jamaica
Solo Exhibitions
2024 A Bolt from the Blue, Jacob Lawrence Gallery, Seattle, WA
2024 Native Diver, Swivel Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2023 sub–marine: The Jeweler of Memory, Real Art Ways, Hartford, CT
2023 sub–marine, The Camera Club at Baxter Street, New York, NY
2022 Simon Benjamin: PILLARS, LMMC Arts Center at Governors Island, New York, NY
2016 FORUM, Solo Exhibition, NLS Kingston, Kingston, Jamaica
Group Exhibitions
2024 NADA House, Swivel Gallery, Governors Island, NY
2024 Malta Biennale, Malta
2023 4.5 Billion Years, Brief Histories, New York, NY
2023 14th Kaunas Biennial, Kaunas, Lithuania
2023 After They Left, Long Story Short, New York, NY
2022 St. Kunigundis Church at documenta15, Atis Rezistans / Ghetto Biennale, Kassel, Germany
2022 Kingston Biennial, National Gallery of Jamaica, Kingston, Jamaica
2022 10/10, The Lighthouse Works, Fishers Island, NY
2022 The earth leaked red ochre, Miriam Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2022 Soft-Firm’s Drive-Thru, the Plaza at 300 Ashland, Brooklyn, NY
2021 Contretemps, NYU Gallatin WetLab, Governors Island, New York, NY
2021 No Man is an Island, Project Art Distribution, N.A.D.A., Governors Island, NY
2021 In the Wake, Hunter College Thesis Exhibition, New York, NY
2020 Between Land and Sea: Simon Benjamin and Timothy Yanick Hunter, The 92nd St. Y, New York, NY
2018 As Above, So Below: Interpretations of Roundness, Outpost Artist Resources, Ridgewood, NY
2018 To Break the Ocean, AC Institute, New York, NY
2017 The Ghetto Biennale, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
2017 Jamaica Biennial, National Gallery of Jamaica, Kingston, Jamaica
2016 Negotiated Realities, Columbia University, New York, NY
Selected Screenings & Film Festivals
2024 The Memory Held within Water - Where Is Africa: Eyes That Listen curated by Keyna Eleison, CARA, New York, NY
2023 AUTODOOR - Ojos Caribe, Homework Gallery, Miami, FL
2023 Errantry - REDCAT, Los Angeles, CA
2023 Errantry - Timerhi Film Festival, Georgetown, Guyana
2022 Errantry - Lumbung Film, documenta15, Kassel, Germany
2022 Errantry - Third Horizon Film Festival, Miami, FL
2021 Errantry - Trinidad x Tobago Film Festival, New Media official selection, Trinidad & Tobago
2019 On Childhood - Beautiful Words are Subversive, Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn, NY
2019 Two Score, Full Moon - Video Snack VII: Video Object, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA
Residencies, Awards, Fellowships and Recognition
2024 Monira Foundation, Artist in Residence - Jersey City, NJ
2024 Jacob Lawrence Legacy Artist in Residence - Seattle, WA
2023 Artadia New York Award - New York, NY
2023 Sharpe-Walentas Studio Program Award - Brooklyn, NY
2022 Baxter St. Camera Club, Artist-in-Residence, New York, NY
2022 Light Work, Artist-in-Residence, Syracuse NY
2022 The Lighthouse Works, Artist-in-Residence, Fishers Island, NY
2021 Global Connections Fellowship Grant, GAHTC, Dept. of Architecture at MIT, Cambridge, MA
2021 Shandaken Projects, Printer-in Residence, New York, NY
2021 Lower Manhattan Cultural Council’s Arts Center, Artist-in-Residence, New York, NY
2021 Jamaica Art Society, In Focus Fellowship, New York, NY
2020 Kaatsbaan Cultural Park, Interdisciplinary residency with CoLab Dance, Tivoli, NY
2019 Goldberg Workshop with Koyo Kouoh at RAW Material Company, Dakar, Senegal
2018 Ruth Stanton Inaugural Scholarship, Hunter College, New York, NY
Talks & Panels
2024 School of Visual Arts, Visiting Artist Lecture: Simon Benjamin, New York, NY
2024 “Saturday Soup” artist talk with Gervais Marsh
2023 Visiting Artist Talk, University of Virginia, Department of Art, Charlottesville, VA
2023 “Saturday Soup” artist talk with TK Smith
2022 Artist Talk by Simon Benjamin. Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Arts Center at Governors Island, New York, NY
2021 Art of and Around The Underground Railroad, Hunter College Dept. of Art and Art History, New York, NY
2021 Project EATS with Linda Goode Bryant: studio visit with Koyo Kouoh and Simon Benjamin, New York, NY
2020 Khalik Allah and Simon Benjamin in Conversation at The Hunter Moving Image Alliance, New York, NY
2020 Online Artist Talk, Syracuse University, Dept. of Transmedia, New York, NY
2020 Online Artist Talk, University of Virginia, Depart. of Art, Charlottesville, VA
2019 Beautiful Words are Subversive, curated by Black Chalk &Co., Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn, NY
2016 Artist Talk with Linyee Yuan for FORUM, a solo exhibition at NLS Kingston, Kingston, Jamaica
2011 “Investing in Imagination” TEDx Jamaica, Invited Speaker, Kingston, Jamaica
Professional Experience
2007 – Present COURTESY – Independent Director, Brooklyn, NY
2024 (Fall) School of Visual Arts – Visiting Artist. New York, NY
2023 (Fall) School of Visual Arts – Visiting Artist. New York, NY
2023 (Spring) Baruch College, CUNY – Adjunct Professor, New York, NY
2021 (Fall) School of Visual Arts – Visiting Artist. New York, NY
2012 – 2018 School of Visual Arts – Adjunct Professor, New York, NY
Bibliography
“Native Diver” by Simon Benjamin, Volume 06 - Neo-Carib Visions, Forgotten Lands (2024)
Crafted Kinship, Inside the Creative Practices of Contemporary Black Caribbean Makers, Malene Barnett, Artisan (2024)
New Talent, Art in America - New York, NY (2024)
“Is Malta the New Kassel?” by Emily Watlington. Art in America (2024)
“Can there be unity in fragmentation?” by Gervais Marsh, exhibition essay. Real Art Ways (2023)
Contact Sheet. Light Work Annual 2023. Catalog essay by Jheanelle Brown (2023)
“Portfolio: Simon Benjamin by Louis Bury. Legacies of the African diaspora.” BOMB Magazine by Louis Bury (2022)
Documenta Fifteen: Handbook by ruangrupa. Hatje Cantz (2022)
“PRESSURE.” Kingston Biennial Catalogue. Kingston, Jamaica: National Gallery of Jamaica.(2022)
“The earth leaked red ochre” The Brooklyn Rail by William Corwin (2022)
The earth leaked red ochre catalog. Edited by Re’al Christian Miriam Gallery. (2022)
“A Meandering Edge: An Interview with Simon Benjamin”, Assemblage Journal, by Veronika Molnár (2021)
“Hunter MFA Grads Mull the Fluid Nature of Time” in Hyperallergic (2021)
To Break the Ocean Catalogue. AC Institute, New York, NY (2018)
2017 Jamaica Biennial Catalogue. Kingston, Jamaica: National Gallery of Jamaica.(2017)