Gilliam, Sam
1933-2022 · Contribution: 1960s-2022
Abstract / Color Field painting and sculpture; pioneered the 'drape' painting — large stained, unstretched canvases hung and draped from walls and ceilings — giving painting a sculptural, three-dimensional presence
Portraits are AI-generated interpretations, not photographs.
Impact on the world
Associated with the Washington Color School, he became the first painter to free the canvas from the stretcher (c.1965) and was dubbed the 'father of the draped canvas'; among the first African American artists to represent the U.S. at the Venice Biennale (1972).
Life & background
African-American artist born Nov 30, 1933 in Tupelo, MS; raised in Louisville, KY. BA (1955) and MA (1961) in painting, University of Louisville; spent his adult life in Washington, DC, as a leading figure of the arts community. Guggenheim Fellow (1971). Died June 25, 2022.
Sources
- Smithsonian American Art Museum; Encyclopedia.com
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