BIO

Lucky Bunny Visual Communications (LBVC) is the brainchild of Los Angeles-based artist and designer, Rich DeSimone. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, DeSimone studied Graphic Design at The Art Institute of Boston, as well as Art Direction at the Portfolio Center in Atlanta, GA and Screen Printing at Massachusetts College of Art. DeSimone spent the first six years of his career in the advertising world, producing award-winning design work for some of the most creative and forward thinking ad agencies and clients across the country.

Inspired by a pet rabbit named “Lucky,” DeSimone founded Lucky Bunny, a design and screen printing shop with a focus on hip hop/rock posters, fine art and apparel, in 2001. Over the past ten years, LBVC has designed and printed for a wide array of local to national talents including Wilco, Public Enemy, DJ Shadow, Dave Matthews Band, The Stooges, Melvins, High on Fire, RJD2 and Jurassic 5, among many others. His pervasive presence in the rock poster/design community led to DeSimone’s inclusion in multiple impressive anthologies including the bible of contemporary concert poster art, The Art of Modern Rock, 1000 Garment Graphics, 1000 Indie Posters and Panda Meat, a tome curated by artist and toy designer Frank Kozik.

In 2010, after a decade of producing his own posters and fine-art screen prints in his Rhode Island studio, and establishing his reputation as a master screen printer for his work with other artists, DeSimone decided to try his hand at west coast living and relocated to the sunny side of Los Angeles, California.

Since landing in L.A., DeSimone has shifted his focus away from posters and towards his larger art career, specifically within mixed media works on canvas, and continues to blur the line between fine art, commercial art, and merchandise. His mastery and merging of a wide range of artistic disciplines coupled with DeSimone’s adventurous journey through both the commercial and fine art worlds has made him into a coveted public speaker. His lectures at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Otis College and Art Center College of Design have offered punchy doses of DeSimone’s pointed advice and unfiltered “tell it like it is” attitude. He has the gift both to amuse and inspire.

In 2011 DeSimone refocused on his fine art work, which takes its imagery from pervasive public signage, and its aesthetic from the decaying layers of urban archeology created when ads and flyers are layered over each other in public spaces, ad infinitum. His work is often simple and purely graphic, with a tongue-in-cheek slyness that belies a deeper conceptual background. His urban ideas find unexpected coupling with rabbits, who are curious, sensitive creatures. The cuteness of the bunnies draws viewers in, then forms a striking contrast with a rough city grunge aesthetic, war-related content, and DeSimone’s signature heaping dose of irony and humor.

In the same year, DeSimone was featured in numerous group shows alongside prominent, renowned artists such as Shepard Fairey, Winston Smith, Mear One, Chaz Bojorquez, Robbie Conal, Ricardo Duffy, and many others. DeSimone also put on two solo shows of his most recent work. The first show was held at the Joseph Watson Collection in Las Vegas and the other was showcased at Los Angeles’ Hold Up Art gallery in Little Tokyo. Both shows coincided with the release of his first limited edition vinyl toy based on his iconic Grenade Bunny character, as well as the unveiling of a massive 4’ tall Grenade Bunny sculpture.

Later in the year, a Special Edition Grenade Bunny was released to critical acclaim at New York Comic Con and immediately sold out, with a number of the collectibles going to international buyers. In addition to his solo shows and projects, DeSimone’s work has been displayed at numerous group exhibitions around the country. He currently maintains a solid base of fans and collectors worldwide.

And he is not finished yet by any means. 2012 has DeSimone gearing up for his biggest year to date. He is already busy with two additional solo shows in the works, group exhibitions, lectures, much anticipated new apparel releases, sculptures, works on canvas, and the continuation of a photography series featuring his “Bunnyman” and “Bunnywoman” characters, all through Lucky Bunny’s signature subversive lens.