SAM GILLIAM | WANDER

Lot Closed

March 7, 05:01 PM GMT

Estimate

25,000 - 35,000 USD

Lot Details

Description

SAM GILLIAM

b.1933

WANDER

signed, titled and dated 1995

museum board, paper, polypropylene, oil and metal artist's hardware on cut birch plywood, in artist's chosen frame

Overall: 47 by 82¼ in. (119.4 by 208.9 cm.)

This work is in very good condition overall. There are some loose fibers present around the edges of most elements due to the artist's chosen working medium. There is some wear to the corners of the frame, notably in the upper left and lower right corners. There are some accretions to the frame on all four sides. Framed in the artist's chosen frame under Plexiglas.

The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot provided by Sotheby's. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colours and shades which are different to the lot's actual colour and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation because Sotheby's is not a professional conservator or restorer but rather the condition report is a statement of opinion genuinely held by Sotheby's. For that reason, Sotheby's condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot.

Baumgartner Gallery, Washington, D.C.

Private Collection, Los Angeles

Acquired from the above by the present owner in 2004

“My work consists of solids and veils: the union of solids, or metal forms, seen as volumes against a raked and grooved paint surface. It is constructed painting, in that it crosses the void between object and viewer, to be part of the space in front of the picture plane. It represents an act of pure passage. The surface is no longer the final plane of the work. It is instead the beginning of an advance into the theater of life.”

– Sam Gilliam, with Annie Gawlak, “Solids and Veils,” Art Journal, 50:1, Spring 1991, pp. 10

Sam Gilliam is an innovative colorist who, by cutting and rearranging geometric shapes from thickly painted canvases, expanded his experiments in color and improvisation. Gilliam’s solo exhibition last year at the Kunstmuseum Basel, Switzerland is an indication of the recent surge in appreciation of the artist’s oeuvre.