about

I’m a self taught fiber mixed media installation artist.

If you would like to hear about upcoming events please email me at dannymansmith@gmail.com

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Working with my hands has saved my life.

Instead of being the fastest or the smartest I found my strength, sanctuary and cushion from the world in making art.

My grandma gave me my first art lessons when I was very young. She sewed my clothes growing up and this influenced me to later teach myself how to use the sewing machine – allowing imperfections, emotions, and child like energies to fuel and inspire me to create.

I want to push myself to make art with the things around me, to be resourceful and to follow my heart’s inspiration.

Making something wearable, drawing with sharpies or the sewing machine, sculpting, to creating installations that incorporate all of these elements has become my spirituality – my survival..

Exhibitions

Tashiro-Kaplan Artist Lofts Building, “12th Annual 30 Day Art Challenge Exhibit”, Seattle, WA, December 6th, 2012

PerficalSense Studio Art Salon, “Grand Reinvention”,  November 3, 2012, Evanston, IL

Spazio Libenter, “esserci, non essendoci” , group exhibition  Milano,  Italy , April  18-19, 2012

Believe Inn, “Hold Fast To Dreams”, group show December 2 – December 24, 2011

Tsubo Salon, “Lost + Found”,  Anca Gray and Danny Mansmith, November 12, 2011

Woolen Mill Gallery, “Offshoots”, Warmfarm resident artist alumni, August 26-September 10, 2011

PerficalSense Studio, “LeUm’phor: an Exploration” works by Danny Mansmith and Alexis Ortiz, April 16, 2011

Hyde Park Art Center,”Not Just Another Pretty Face”, November 20, 2010 – February 20, 2011

Lillstreet Art Center, “Danny Mansmith, Solo Exhibition”, September 17 – October 8, 2010

Avram Eisen Gallery, “Bert Menco and Danny Mansmith”, October 9 – 28, 2009

Artists of Eastbank Building, “Conversations in Clay: Merging Media”, October 10 – 17, 2009

Noyes Cultural Arts Center, “Stitch Me A Story”, September 16 – November 10, 2009

Santa Fe Weaving Gallery, “Body Sculpture”, June 9 – 15, 2009

Northern Illinois University Art Museum, “Crossing Threads, Crossing Boundaries”, January 20, 2009 – March 6, 2009

MN Gallery, Solo Exhibition, “Life Through The Sewing Machine”, October 24, 2008 – November 9, 2008

Indie Collective Gallery, September 6 – October 24, 2008

Hyde Park Art Center, “Not Just Another Pretty Face”, October 18, 2008 – January 17, 2009

Foutainhead Gallery, “Pens & Needles”, works by Shawna Handke and Danny Mansmith, June 4-June 21, 2008

Ridge Art,”Fabric and Fabricators: Four Textile Artists”, May 16 – August, 2008

Hyde Park Art Center, Gallery 4, “Soft Life “,January 20 -March 30, 2008

Hyde Park Art Center, “Double Walkers, Transfigurations Thru Fashion”, December 7-16, 2007

Gallery 659, “Off The Wall”, November 27-December 30, 2007

Suffolk Museum,”Women of Steel, Men of Cloth,” September 15, 2007-October 21,2007

NeoCon 2007,Herman Miller Chicago Showroom,June 11,12,13,2007

Gallery659,”4BY4″,May4-May30,2007

Gallery659,”Men @ Work”,April 6-April 30,2007

Gallery659,”Founders Show”,March 2-March 31,2007

Artstream Studios,”Extreme Textiles” March 1-April 30,2007

Edna Carlesten Gallery at University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point,”Clothing as Metaphor”,March 11-April 8,2007

Chicago Cultural Center,”Stitching Salon” January 2,2007-February 28,2007, fiber based sculpture

Artformz Alternative Gallery,”It’s SO unfair”November 11-January 9,2007,installation of 7’ tall fabric,wood figure with 600 paper flowers

Judy A Saslow Gallery, “Scene in Chicago”, October 20-Nomember 25 ,2006 fiber sculpture and two dimensional works

Old Market,”Static”,October 13-31,2006,collaborative works with Theaster Gates

Artformz Alternative Gallery,”Extraordinary Worlds”,September 9-November 7, 2006,two dimensional and three dimensional fiber based works

Art on Armitage, a window gallery, June 2006,installation of mixed media sculpture

Morpho Gallery, “Visions of the Unknown”, April-May 2006, fiber sculpture

Artformz, “Colorblind”, March-April 2006, Miami, FL, work made with a limited color palate

Reversible Eye, “Doll and Puppet Show”, January 2006, fabric and paper dolls

Cornelia Arts Building, “Between the Lines”, May 2005, fiber sculpture, bags, and wearable art

Morpho Gallery, “Dream=Land”, December 2005, paper and fabric sculpture

Gross Park Sculpture Invitational, “Look Up. Look In. Look Out.”, flora and fauna inspired fiber sculpture

Izzo/Jones Gallery, “Artropolis”, 2004, paper and fabric sculpture

Soul Café, “Frayed Knot”, 2004, fabric Sculpture and paper and fabric collage

Gross Park Sculpture Invitational, Rejectamenta, 2004, found paper and fabric sculpture

Plastiscene Loft, “33 1/3”, 2004, fabric and paper sculpture

Gallery 203, “Want to Wear”, 1994, clothing and paper and fabric collageArt Shows

Other Events

Urban Craft Uprising Summer Show, July 13 and 14, 2013, 11am-5pm, Seattle Center Exhibition Hall

4th Annual Gifted Holiday Bazaar 2012, December 9th, noon – 5pm, Feedback Lounge

3rd Annual Artful Giving Sale, December 1st and 2nd,  2012,  PercifalSense Studio and Art Salon

Artwear Unlimited Fall/Winter Show and Sale  October 24-26, 2012

Artwear Unlimited Spring/Summer Show and Sale April 25-27, 2012

Wrapped Figure workshop February 4, 2012,  Art In”stitch”tute Chicago

2nd Annual Artful Giving Sale December 2-4, 2011, PerficalSense Studio

Artist Wreath Invitational, lill Street Art Center, November 30, 2007

Artist Trunk Show and Sale at the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art, October 26, 2007, Saturday and Sunday, October 27 and 28,2007

Cornelia Arts Holiday Sale, Cornelia Fine Arts Building, 2003, 2004, 2005

Out There Art Fair, Wood Street Gallery, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007

Art for Charity Days, Cornelia Fine Arts Building, 2004

Workshops And Other Events

Wormfarm Institute Residency October 12 – 18, 2009

Chicago Gardens Past & Present, collaboration with Cathi Bouzide, June 17 – August 16, 2000

The Fields Project, Oregon, IL June 14 – June 22, 2008

Artist in Residence at Caro D’Offay Gallery for “The Colorist Chess” October, 2007

Ravenswood Art Walk, 2006, 2007, 2008

Symposium on Contemporary Textiles in Illinois at the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art, The Boys Meet the Girls Panel, Sunday, November 4, 2007

Lillstreet Art Center,Sculptural hand bag class late summer and early fall sessions 2007

Elm Place Middle School,discussion about my work and demonstration of collaged musical instruments with the themes of the Harlem Renaissance given to the 6,7,and 8 graders of Beth Lucker’s art classes

Braeside Elementary School, Art Night, 2006 – fabric doll demonstration

Fabric, 2005, Roosevelt University – demonstration of fiber art methods

Art: The Fiber of Education, 2004, Michigan Art Education Association, Battle Creek Michigan – artist talk and demonstration of fiber art methods Altered

In The Collection Of

Illinois State Museum Chicago Gallery

J. Robert Duncan

Ruth Horwich