In Celebration 1983

Sam Gilliam made this canvas, In Celebration, with acrylic paint, and collage. I love how Gilliam uses the color blue, like a portal or a window into another dimension. The paint looks thin, like watercolor, with some white spots like shining stars. You can almost feel the movement, as if Gilliam was dancing with the brush, splattering and swirling the paint across the surface. It's like he's in conversation with other painters, like Joan Mitchell, or maybe even Helen Frankenthaler. These arcs make me think of early Stella. I feel like I can see his thoughts and emotions in every stroke. It’s like a secret language. What was he thinking when he made those marks? What was he feeling? The collage element makes me want to see more of Gilliam's work. It’s so interesting how artists play off each other, responding to ideas across time. Painting is this ongoing exchange, a way of feeling and expressing. There’s no right or wrong answer, just different ways of seeing and experiencing the world.