Dawud Anyabwile Collection

Dawud Anyabwile (previously known as David A. Sims) is an illustrator and comic artist based in Atlanta, GA.

Anyabwile was born February 6, 1965 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. From an early age, he had an interest in art that was nurtured and cultivated in his home. He credits his high school art teacher for giving him a solid foundation of knowledge. He cites Ernie Barnes, Overton Lloyd, and Mort Drucker as influences. He has stated that his art is an extension of his experience and beliefs rooted in family entertainment.

From 1984-1990, he worked as t-shirt airbrush artist in The Gallery Mall in Philadelphia, but later expanding to New Jersey, New York, and Washington, D.C. This work which involved utilizing and refining his use of expression, would later directly influence the artwork in his comic book series entitled Brotherman: Dictator of Discipline that he co-created with his brother, author Guy Sims. He also stated that he created Brotherman out of a desire to see more Black characters in comics. The original comic book series was published in 1982. And in 2016, he and his brother released a graphic novel entitled Brotherman: Dictator of Discipline – Revelation. Anyabwile currently runs Big City Entertainment, a creative arts and animation company. In addition to his work as an independent artist, Anyabwile has also worked with other studios and production companies. Anyabwile worked as a production designer for Pink Panther CD-ROM games from 1996-1997. He worked as a character designer for shows such as Klasky Csupo’s The Wild Thornberrys and The Rugrats television series from 1997-1999. He also worked as a production designer for Tuner Studios in Atlanta, Georgia from 2001-2004. Other clients include Nickelodeon, MTV Animation, Scholastic, BET, and NBA TV.

Anyabwile has won several awards and has received recognition for Brotherman: Dictator of Discipline – Revelation including a Glyph Award for Best Artist in 2016.