Sewing Fields
June 13, 2025–January 25, 2026
IMMA, the Irish Musuem of Modern Art, presents a solo exhibition by pioneering abstract artist Sam Gilliam (1933–2022) one of the great innovators in post-war American painting. Emerging in the mid-1960s, Gilliam is best known for his canonical Drape paintings, which expanded on the principles of Abstract Expressionism in entirely new ways. Suspending unstretched lengths of painted canvas from the walls or ceilings of exhibition spaces, Gilliam transformed his medium and the contexts in which it was viewed.
This exhibition, co-organised with the Sam Gilliam Foundation, focuses on a formative period in the early 1990s when Gilliam undertook a transformative residency in Ireland at the Ballinglen Arts Foundation and began exploring new methods of cutting, layering, and sewing fabric. These stitched and collaged works marked a significant shift in his practice and would inform his making for the next two decades. The exhibition includes drape paintings and rarely seen textile-based works, revealing a period of radical experimentation that demonstrates Gilliam’s exceptional mastery of colour, form and material.
The dramatic, undulating forms in his work resonate with the vastness and wildness of the Irish coast, featuring loose, flowing compositions that reflect the organic and unpredictable nature of the land and sea. Gilliam’s signature vibrant colour fields were influenced by the unique Irish light, resulting in atmospheric, almost translucent hues. By moving away from the rigid geometry of modernism, Gilliam’s work in Ireland fostered an intuitive dialogue with the surrounding environment, celebrating the physicality of painting and the emotional resonance of place through abstraction and materiality.
Annie Gawlak, president of the Sam Gilliam Foundation, said: “Sam's work exemplified a commitment to pushing the boundaries of artmaking, responding to his environment and transforming his medium within its context. His time in Ireland was a pivotal moment in his career, serving as a recurring source of inspiration. Our collaboration with IMMA celebrates his enduring connection to Ireland and the ways it influenced the experimental works he created during his time there.”
A fully illustrated monograph on Sam Gilliam accompanies the exhibition. The publication features contributions by John Beardsley, renowned curator and art historian, and Thelma Golden, Director and Chief Curator of The Studio Museum in Harlem, alongside introductions by the exhibition curators Seán Kissane, Curator, IMMA and Mary Cremin, Head of Programming, IMMA. The publication offers fresh insights into Gilliam’s radical approach to abstraction and his Ireland-inspired works. Price 20 EUR.
To coincide with the exhibition IMMA presents a new performance installation by New York based Sweat Variant, the collaborative practice of Okwui Okpokwasili and Peter Born, acclaimed for their highly experimental, formally inventive cross-disciplinary work. The pair will present my tongue is a blade on Saturday, June 14 and Sunday, June 15, 2025 from 2–5pm in the Chapel at IMMA. Click here for further details.
This exhibition continues IMMA’s engagement with artists whose work has received renewed attention and accolades in recent years that has included Howardena Pindell (2023), Derek Jarman (2019), and Frank Bowling (2018).
