Jeanne K. Simmons New Exhibition Announced at Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art

Blurring the boundaries between body, sculpture and landscape, “Jeanne K. Simmons: Rooted,” opening at Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA) on Oct. 11, will feature Simmons' organic, wearable sculptures and accompanying photographs. 

"Rooted” will feature a site-specific installation of her sculptures, crafted — like much of her work — from foraged materials, such as moss, branches and wild grasses. Creating an installation for an indoor gallery space is a first for Simmons, as she transports a living fragment of the forest and shores of Washington state into an Arizona gallery. Simmons hopes that the installation will look, smell and feel like the temperate rainforests of her home. 

“I plan to bring some of the moisture of the Pacific Northwest to the desert of Arizona,” Simmons said. “Into this mini landscape I will be ‘planting' some of my sculptural pieces, and I am hoping to create something that resembles a prehistoric or post-apocalyptic setting with mysterious remnants of human activity embedded into it.” 

This exhibition — at once whimsical, ephemeral and, at times, even fatalistic — will ask viewers to see her works as both tender gestures and quiet acts of resistance.  

Simmons is driven by a deep concern for climate change, creating art that is rooted in ecological reverence and that recognizes the fragile and interdependent balance we have with nature. In recent months, she has felt a drive to do more and say more as an artist. 

“The frustration that so many of us across the globe are feeling right now is powerful and palpable,” Simmons said. “I feel like I'm bursting at the seams. I think my work often has a restorative effect upon people, for which I am grateful, but I am hoping to be more disruptive in the future. I'd like to cause a ruckus.” 

Simmons' photographs are essential to her mission of describing her belief that humans are part of the natural world. She began to understand that when she shared “Grass Cocoon,” the first piece of this series, and it deeply moved those who came across it. 

Carrie Tovar, registrar and collections manager for SMoCA, was one of these people. She was drawn in by Simmons' use of natural materials to create sculptural elements, and she shared the work with Keshia Turley, assistant curator for SMoCA, who would go on to curate Simmons' exhibition. 

“I love that she creates from the land itself,” Tovar said. “Her sculptures are often ephemeral, and I'm intrigued by the idea of nature being transient and fleeting but always present. There's a sense of reverence and stillness in her work that I find incredibly compelling.” 

Turley is captivated by Simmons' photographs and the way her sculptures seem to emerge from — and at times merge with — the land, rather than simply existing on it. When she views Simmons' art, it's with a mix of melancholy and hope. There's sorrow for the land, for what's been lost and for the systems that continue to cause harm, but there's also a sense of wonder. 

“Jeanne's work reminds us that we can choose a different kind of relationship with the Earth — one grounded in humility, reverence and reciprocity,” Turley said. “It isn't an easy conversation, to be sure, but it's a valuable one to have and to consider, even if it's only in the small ways to make a difference.” 

Turley believes Simmons' work offers space for a slow kind of seeing, rare in our fast-paced daily lives. And Simmons hopes those who visit “Rooted” will be inspired to reflect upon their own relationships with the natural world. 

“I hope that viewers will feel the impulse to sit on the ground and look around at the plants and critters and listen to the birds,” Simmons said. “Maybe some people will want to lie down on the ground and look up at the sky and take a few deep breaths. Mostly, I hope to remind people that we humans are part of the beautiful and complex fabric of the natural world and that our fates are intertwined.” 

Additional events associated with this exhibition will be announced at a later date. The exhibition runs through Feb. 22, 2026. 

“Jeanne K. Simmons: Rooted” is part of the series PROJECT SPACE — an initiative that supports emerging and established artists in expanding their practice. The exhibition is organized by Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA) and curated by Keshia Turley, assistant curator.   

SMoCA — named “Best Art Museum” in the Best of Phoenix awards — is located at 7374 E. Second St., Scottsdale, Arizona 85251. It is open Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Visit SMoCA.org for information.