RUSH 25th Anniversary Portfolio Launch

Holding up 'Timbuktu' by Barbara Bullock, a collage of a black figure portrait made out of painted black leaves against a hot pink painted background

Portfolio box shot showing 'Mother Pin with Shirt' by Syd Carpenter, a clay sculpture of a doll laying face up

Holding Syd Carpenter's 'Mother Pin With Shirt', among other prints laying out on tables at the Brooklyn Editions studio

Syd Carpenter's 'Mother Pin With Shirt', Arvie Smith's 'Take Me To The Water', Tokie Rome-Taylor's 'Birthright', and Martha Jackson Jarvis' 'Blues In The Night' prints laying out on tables at the Brooklyn Editions studio

Portfolio box open to show Arvie Smith's 'Take Me To The Water', a painting of a black man smoking a cigarette and wearing a colorful pinstriped shirt in front of a brick wall with a sea in the background where a bare woman is emerging from

Close-up detail of the corner of a print, showcasing an embossed stamp with Brooklyn Editions' mark 'BKX'

Portfolio box open to show Tokie Rome-Taylor's 'Birthright', where 2 young black children dressed in tulle and formal dresses are posed with an open book against a green curtain backdrop

Close-up shot of Alfred Amadu Conteh's 'Reesie', which shows a painted portrait of a black figure in blues and violets against a textured gold background

Portfolio box open to show Stephen Towns' 'We Shall Pass through The Combahee with You', which shows a stitched blanket of black figures carrying an American flag rowing a boat down a water body with hills, the sky, and buildings in the background

Portfolio box open to show Vanessa German's 'Black Botanical #3', which is a painted portrait of a black figure with a bright yellow flower growing from the figure's face

Close-up detail of Vanessa German's print, showcasing the bright yellow flower and its petal details

Going through prints in the Rush Arts porfolio box, holding Martha Jackson Jarvis' 'Blues in the Night'

Rush Arts portfolio box open to show the interior blue lining and pocket that contained the RUSH 24 artwork list and handling gloves

All prints part of the Rush Arts portfolio box displayed for exhibition on the walls at Westwood Gallery NYC

Barbara Bullock signing a copy of her print 'Timbuktu' in her studio

Arvie Smith signing a copy of his print 'Take Me to the Water' in his studio

Danny Simmons, co-founder and artist at Rush Arts signing a Certificate of Authenticity for the portfolio at Westwood Gallery NYC

Photograph of the crowd at Westwood Gallery to commemorate Danny Simmons' solo exhibition at the Rush Arts portfolio box launch

Berrisford Boothe, project coordinator at Rush Arts, signing a Certificate of Authenticity for the portfolio at Westwood Gallery NYC

Detail shot of the Rush Arts portfolio box cover, featuring a blind emboss that reads 'RUSH 25' on a coated silver fabric

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October

2022

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RUSH Philanthropic Arts Foundation

4954 Old York Road

Philadelphia, PA 19141

Learn More

Presenting one of the most special projects we have ever been a part of: we have sponsored and produced a beautiful, compelling, and socially significant portfolio of work. Twelve important contemporary African American artists donated works for the 25th Anniversary of RUSH Arts, a philanthropic foundation whose programs benefit underserved creative communities of color in New York and Philadelphia.

Through the thoughtful curation and planning of RUSH Arts Co-Founder and Artist Danny Simmons and Project Coordinator Berrisford Boothe, we formed a unique collaboration that will raise significant funds for arts programs, education, and exhibition opportunities. This commemorative project consists of 45 limited edition hand-signed print portfolios that boast a powerful body of work from artists:

Arvie Smith, Felandus Thames, Tokie Rome-Taylor, LaToya Hobbs, Alfred Amadu Conteh, Vanessa German, Syd Carpenter, Barbara Bullock, Martha Jackson-Jarvis, Didier William, Stephen Towns, Dr. Fahamu Pecou.

All printed exclusively on Hahnemühle paper and presented in a handmade portfolio box.

The launch of this portfolio coincided with Danny's solo exhibition The Long And Short Of It at Westwood Gallery in New York City, where exhibition copies of all 12 artist prints were displayed in the gallery. Also featuring a poetry reading by Danny Simmons accompanied by musician Eric Frazier, the launch was an appropriately joyous and wonderful celebration of this project.

Our experience working on this portfolio marks the first instance where we have fully sponsored the print production of a project or exhibition, also covering file preparation, proofing, liaison between artists and manufacturers, and the preparation of documents. Having printed for Danny for many years, and getting to learn about the RUSH Arts foundation over time, we were more than happy to contribute to their 25th anniversary with this project. RUSH Arts provides essential support for communities that the art world owes so much to, and it is of deep importance to us that programs and efforts such as theirs continue to be around.

Studio photographs taken by Brooklyn Editions Inc. All artwork courtesy of the artists.