The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts

Gladys Nilsson: Gleefully Askew, 1963 – 2026

Institution
Crocker Art Museum
Grant Cycle
Fall 2024
Amount
$70,000
Type of Grant
Exhibition Support
Website
www.crockerart.org/gladys-nilsson-gleefully-askew ↗
Gladys Nilsson, Small Ape Place, 1973. Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 36 in
Gladys Nilsson, Spark, 2023. Watercolor, gouache, graphite, colored pencil, ink and crayon on paper, 40 ¼ × 60 ¼ in.
Gladys Nilsson, Ladies Dance, 1975. Watercolor on paper, 14 x 11 ½ in.
Gladys Nilsson, Waterplay, 2023. Colored pencil, watercolor, gouache, graphite and crayon on paper, 30 x 22 ½ in.
Gladys Nilsson, Jump Rope, 1996. Watercolor on paper, 13 7/8 x 9 7/8 in.
Gladys Nilsson, Winterlude, 1996. Watercolor and gouache on paper, 10 1/8 x 8 in.

Born in Chicago in 1940, Gladys Nilsson is best known for her watercolors of long-limbed figures engaged in everyday micro-dramas. As a member of Chicago’s Hairy Who in the 1960s, Nilsson made watercolors that earned her a reputation as the most “feminine” member of the group—a characterization that she has challenged and spoofed throughout her career. Nilsson’s self-reflexive approach has guided her experimental practice, which includes Plexiglas paintings, largescale diptychs, embroidery-hoop paintings, black-on-silver drawings, prints, and mixed-media collages.

See Also

2006

The Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant is launched as part of an arts writing initiative designed to support independent, progressive arts publications and individual arts writers.