| James Gill | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | James Francis Gill |
| Born | 1934 Tahoka, Texas, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Field | Painting |
| Movement | Pop art |
James Francis Gill (born 1934) is an American artist and one of the protagonists in the pop-art movement.[1]
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He was born in Tahoka, Texas and grew up in San Angelo, Texas. His mother, an interior decorator and entrepreneur, encouraged her son to have an artistic interest. When Gill was around 10 years old, his mother painted a wooden floor in the family home in the style of Jackson Pollock. In high school, Gill and some friends started a rodeo club to pursue their first dream of being cowboys.[1]
From 1957 to 1960, Gill served in the United States Marines. After leaving the Marines, he earned his living as an architect/illustrator. This was a curious beginning for an artist about to explode onto the pop art scene. In the summer of 1962, Gill traveled to Los Angeles with a series of paintings under his arm titled "Women in Cars". Upon his arrival in L.A., Gill walked in the Felix Landau Gallery (as renowned in L.A. as Leo Catelli Galllery in New York). Landau agreed to represent Gill on the spot, something he had never done before. By November, 1962 Gill had achieved international acclaim when his "Marilyn Tryptych" (a 3-panel painting of Marilyn Monroe) was purchased by the Museum of Modern Art and featured in Life Magazine. Indeed, Gill's "Marilyn" study actually preceded Warhol's more famous study of the tragic screen legend.[1]
Throughout the fifties and sixties, a new school of artists emerged on the scene. They made “Pop Art” a household name. This group included Andy Warhol, Frank Stella, Roy Lichtenstein, Jasper Johns, James Rosenquist, Robert Rauschenberg, Claes Oldenburg and James Francis Gill. James Gill was one of the standouts among the pop artists. He experienced a rapid ascent in the art world, getting his work into major collections such as New York's Museum of Modern Art and receiving commissions such as the cover of Time Magazine in 1968. Over the decade that followed, Gill became an icon in the pop art world.[1] Major museums that added his work to their collections included:
In 1968, Gill was included in the world-famous São Paulo 9 exhibit. That single event, more than any other, established the hierarchy of the Pop Art icons.[2] Among those included (in order of billing) were:
His work is often included in the realm of Pop Art but, unlike his contemporaries, Gill's art reflected qualities of a contemporary consciousness and a classical tradition as well.
In 2008, after re-emerging from a 35 year hiatus,[1] Gill's story caught the attention of Hollywood.[2] A feature length documentary about him, hosted by Forrest Sawyer, is in production.