[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 84 (Monday, June 13, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1074-E1075]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        RECOGNIZING SAM GILLIAM

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 13, 2011

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask the House of 
Representatives to join me in recognizing Sam Gilliam, a world-renowned 
artist, an innovative leader in artistic expression, and a resident of 
the District of Columbia. Sam Gilliam's work has been acclaimed 
throughout our nation. We now ask the Congress of the United States to 
officially recognize Sam Gilliam as well.
  Born in Tupelo, Mississippi, Sam has spent most of his distinguished 
career as a resident of the nation's capitol. Through the guidance and 
encouragement of his elementary school teachers, Sam discovered his 
interest in painting and artistic expression while growing up in 
Louisville, Kentucky. After graduating from Central High School in 
Louisville, Sam earned a bachelor of arts degree in fine arts and a 
master's degree in painting at the University of Louisville. He taught 
in Louisville public schools and served in the United States Army.
  Sam Gilliam's work is distinctive in its creative artistry, using 
bright, piercing colors (which solidified his place at the Washington 
Color School), distorting geometric shapes, and displaying unframed 
painted canvases, enabling the work of art and background to blend as 
one.
  As a member of the Smithsonian Art Collectors Program, Sam has 
produced several pieces to benefit arts education programs at the 
Smithsonian Institution, including In Celebration, 1987 and Museum 
Moment, 2009. In 2005, the District's prestigious Corcoran Gallery of 
Art honored Sam with a retrospective exhibition that highlighted his 
artistic achievements. Sam's first solo exhibition was featured in the 
District's Jefferson Place Gallery, and the current exhibition of his 
work at two premiere galleries in the city, the Philips Collection and 
the Katzen Center at American University, indicate continuing 
appreciation of his unique pieces. Sam has been awarded numerous 
honorary degrees, and his work has been featured throughout the world, 
including the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; Tate Gallery, 
London; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Hirshhorn Museum and 
Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC; Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, 
OH; and the Musee d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, France. 
Sam's new piece for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit 
Authority's (Metro) Art-in-Transit Program, From a Model to a Rainbow, 
is being displayed at the Metro underpass at 4th and Cedar Street, NW 
near Takoma Station. I will be among the guests to recognize Sam on 
Saturday, June 11, 2011, at Takoma Station.
  The District of Columbia and its residents are particularly grateful 
for Sam Gilliam's work in developing the next generation of artists by 
mentoring and teaching art classes to DC Public Schools students. His 
studio is located in the historic Shaw neighborhood, an area of the 
city known for its diverse forms of music, dance, and culture.
  For a lifetime of achievements and for continuing contributions to 
the arts, as recognized throughout the nation and the world, I ask the 
House to join me in celebrating the uniquely distinctive place of Sam 
Gilliam in the arts.

[[Page E1075]]



                          ____________________