It’s hard to pinpoint Jimmy Simpson’s style. The illustrator and animation director likes to keep things fluid, exploring different directions with each and every project. “I like to keep my personal style pretty fluid while connecting each project with recurring imagery and themes,” Simpson explained in an interview with Working Not Working.
Based in Brooklyn, his graphic illustration and short to-the-point animations often pull from ’90s nostalgia and art history. But his inspiration also includes musicians and artist who, just like him, don’t limit themselves stylistically. “This includes people like Heinz Edelmann, Toro Y Moi, Wayne White, and Flying Lotus just to name a few,” he says, adding: “Stylistically I have been really influenced by the drawings of Ken Price and paintings by Stuart Davis over the last few years.”
Hard at work, his clients include MTV, Vice, GQ, and Facebook. “I usually have 3 or 4 project ideas floating around in my head and I don’t feel quite right unless I’m making progress on one of them,” he admits. “I feel really lucky that I’ve been able to convince people to pay me to make things for them and I’m going to ride that out as long as possible.” And when he’s not riding his luck, he rides around New York City via skateboard.
Take a look at some of his short animations in the gallery below:
