# Buster Simpson

Lewis Cole "Buster" Simpson (born in 1942) is an American sculptor and environmental artist based in Seattle, Washington.

## Career

Lewis Cole Simpson was born in Saginaw, Michigan and raised in a nearby farming community. He became interested in art while attending junior college in Flint and attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, graduating in 1969 with a master in fine arts. After graduating, Simpson joined other artists at the Woodstock Festival in New York state, helping build play areas for festivalgoers.
Simpson caught the attention of glass artist Dale Chihuly in 1971 while giving a talk at the Rhode Island School of Design and invited him to join the new Pilchuck Glass School near Stanwood, Washington. Two years later, Simpson moved to Seattle and began his work in "recycled art" at a studio in Pioneer Square. During the 1970s, Simpson created several pieces of public art along Post Alley near Pike Place Market, utilizing materials from dumpsters and thrift shops for Shared Clothesline and discarded bottles as scrap glass for 90 Pine Show and Counterparts. He also developed an alter ego, named "Woodman", used during street performances while scavenging for materials.
During the 1980s, Simpson engaged in "agitprop" work, including dropping soft limestone blocks in the headwaters of the Hudson River that was dubbed by the media as "River Rolaids". Simpson was later commissioned by institutions and governments across the United States and Canada to create public art to display in cities. Simpson was given his first career retrospective in 2013 at the Frye Art Museum in Seattle, called Buster Simpson: Surveyor.
In 2019, Buster Simpson was included in two group exhibitions exploring the material glass as vehicle for sculpture, in painting and as tool of conceptual inspiration - An Alternative History: The Other Glass, in New York City and As In Also: An Alternative Too, in Seattle - each organized by artist, published author and independent curator John Drury.

## Works

Art in Public Places :
| TITLE | LOCATION | CITY | STATE/COUNTRY | YEAR | NOTES |
| Divining | Latta Plantation Nature Preserve Visitor's Center | Huntersville | North Carolina | 2018 | |
| Wickiup Overlook & Encampment | Pearsall Park | San Antonio | Texas | 2016 | |
| Discombobulated Discourse | Duwamish Revealed | Seattle | Washington | 2015 | |
| Orange Lining & Impressed Concrete | TriMet Orange Line | Portland | Oregon | 2015 | Collaboration with Peg Butler |
| Cradle | South Waterfront Park | Portland | Oregon | 2015 | |
| Offering Cycle | | Anchorage | Alaska | 2014 | |
| Anthropocene Beach | Elliott Bay Seawall Habitat Project | Seattle | Washington | In Progress | |
| Vernacular | Bellevue Regional Library | Bellevue | Washington | 2013 | |
| Presence | Salt Lake City Public Safety Building | Salt Lake City | Utah | 2013 | |
| Aerie | US Army Corps of Engineers HQ | Seattle | Washington | 2012 | |
| Oculus Sol | Old Town Center | Indio | California | 2012 | |
| Carbon Veil | SeaTac International Airport Rental Car Facility | Seattle | Washington | 2012 | |
| Dekumstruction Bike Corral | Adjacent to Breakside Brewery/NE | Portland | Oregon | 2012 | Collaboration with Peg Butler |
| Bio Boulevard & Water Molecule | Brightwater Treatment Facility | Woodinville | Washington | 2011 | |
| Flamingo Arroyo | Flamingo Arroyo Trailhead | Las Vegas | Nevada | 2010 | Collaboration with Barbara Grygutis, Kevin Berry |
| Cloke Plaza | University of Maine | Orono | Maine | 2010 | |
| Bucket Brigade | East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District HQ | Portland | Oregon | 2009 | Collaboration with Peg Butler |
| Whole Flow | Whole Foods | Pasadena | California | 2009 | |
| Instrument Implement: Walla Walla Campanile | William A. Grant Water & Environmental Center | Walla Walla | Washington | 2008 | |
| Poetic License | William A. Grant Water & Environmental Center | Walla Walla | Washington | 2008 | |
| Ice Blade | Olympic Oval Bridge | Richmond | British Columbia, Canada | 2008 | |
| Parable | Sound Transit, Mount Baker Station | Seattle | Washington | 2008 | |
| Tempe Light Rail Transit Bridge | | Tempe | Arizona | 2007 | |
| The Monolith | Turtle Bay Exploration Center | Redding | California | 2005 | |
| Rosettaraay | Merck-Rosetta | Seattle | Washington | 2004 | |
| Ping Pong Plaza | Merck-Rosetta | Seattle | Washington | 2004 | |
| Beckoning Cistern | Growing Vine Street | Seattle | Washington | 2003 | |
| Mobius Band | Puget Sound Environmental Learning Center | Bainbridge Island | Washington | 2002 | |
| Portal | Washington State University | Pullman | Washington | 2001 | |
| Water Glass & Water Table | Ellington Condominium | Seattle | Washington | 2001 | |
| Moment | Harbor Steps | Seattle | Washington | 2000 | |
| Brush with Illumination | False Creek | Vancouver | British Columbia, Canada | updated 2009 | |
| Parapet Relay | University of Washington/Tacoma Campus | Tacoma | Washington | 1997 | |
| King Street Gardens | | Alexandria | Virginia | 1997 | Collaboration with Laura Sindell, Mark Spitzer, Becca Hanson |
| Offering Hat, Drinking Cup and Illuminated Boat | Kansas City Public Health Facility | Kansas City | Missouri | 1997 | |
| Fenceline Artifact and Prairie Wagon | Denver International Airport | Denver | Colorado | 1994 | |
| Exchanger Fountain | Anaheim Redevelopment Agency | Anaheim | California | 1993 | |
| Host Analog | Oregon Convention Center | Portland | Oregon | 1991 | |
| Seattle George Monument | Seattle Convention Center | Seattle | Washington | 1989 | |
Temporary Installations or Art Actions :
| TITLE | LOCATION | CITY | STATE/COUNTRY | YEAR |
| Purge Series | Hudson River and other locations | | New York | 1983–Present |
| Shared Clothesline | Belltown | Seattle | Washington | 1978 |
| Lundeberg Derby Monument | | Seattle | Washington | |
* 2009 Public Art Network Award from Americans for the Arts