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.
Gladys Nilsson: Gleefully Askew, 1963 – 2026
“I’ll endorse with my name any of the following: clothing, AC-DC, cigarettes, small tapes, sound equipment, ROCK ‘N ROLL RECORDS, anything, film, and film equipment, Food, Helium, Whips, MONEY!! love and kisses ANDY WARHOL.”
Village Voice Classified, 1966.