WATTS INDEXThe canonical database of visual culture

Artists›Glenn Ligon

Glenn Ligon

Artist

WA-00003787

Installation ArtConceptual ArtVideo Art

Representation

None documented

Institutional Exhibitions

Works in Collection

Assets Indexed

Authority-backed Facts

Publications Referenced

100%

Profile Completeness

Cultural Positioning

Influence Graph

No influence edges encoded yet.

Authority Records (2)

WikidataQ5568956

MoMA

Selected Institutional Exhibitions

View all exhibitions →

No image

Tabula Rasa

Paula Cooper Gallery

2024

Field Verification (6 fields)

0 cross-verified · 6 single-source

LocationGallery Hauser + Gallery· 80%
Birth yearGallery· 60%
BiographyGallery· 60%
NationalityGallery· 60%
Primary mediumGallery· 60%
Profile imageGallery· 60%

Source Registry (7)

Christies-Artsyhttps://www.artsy.net/artist/glenn-ligon
Tier 3 · Scraped/inferred100%
Luhring-Augustinehttps://www.artsy.net/artist/glenn-ligon
Tier 3 · Scraped/inferred100%
Kavi-Guptahttps://www.artsy.net/artist/glenn-ligon
Tier 3 · Scraped/inferred100%
Sothebyshttps://www.sothebys.com/en/artists/glenn-ligon
Tier 3 · Scraped/inferred100%
Hauser-Wirthhttps://www.artsy.net/artist/glenn-ligon
Tier 3 · Scraped/inferred100%
MoMA bulk 2026-05-04https://www.moma.org/artists/6902
Tier 1 · Institutional92%
Paula-Cooper
Tier 3 · Scraped/inferred60%

About

Why this artist matters now

No biography available for Glenn Ligon yet.

Graph relationships

Taste overlap and adjacency

Movement

Installation Art

Medium

—

Related Artists

12 in graph

Institutional

Museum Collections

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Cleveland Museum of Art Art Institute of Chicago Victoria and Albert Museum Tate Whitney Museum of American Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Canonical record

Artworks (45)

Extract

2021 · Aquatint with photogravure

plate: 4 5/8 × 6" (11.8 × 15.2 cm); sheet: 14 1/2 × 15" (36.8 × 38.1 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

WattsOS

Debris Field II

2015 · Aquatint with sugarlift, drypoint, and scraper

Plate: 16 × 12 in. (40.6 × 30.5 cm) Sheet: 21 1/2 in. × 17 in. (54.6 × 43.2 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

WattsOS

Rückenfigur

2009 · Neon and paint

Overall: 24 × 145 1/2 × 5 in. (61 × 369.6 × 12.7 cm)

Whitney Museum of American Art

The Death of Tom

2008 · 16mm film transferred to video (black and white, sound)

23 min.

Museum of Modern Art

The Rivington Place Portfolio

2006 · Print

Victoria and Albert Museum

Untitled

2006 · Neon lights and paint

object: 610 x 4267 mm

Tate

Warm Broad Glow

2005 · Neon and blackout paint

26" × 16' (66 × 487.7 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Self-Portrait at Eleven Years Old

2004 · Stenciled linen pulp

composition (irreg.): 29 3/8 × 22 11/16" (74.6 × 57.7 cm); sheet: 35 5/8 × 29 15/16" (90.5 × 76 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Figure

2001 · Set of fifty screenprints

sheet (each): 9 x 6" (22.9 x 15.2 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Boys with Basketball, Harriet Tubman, Salimu, Letter B #3

2001 · Felt-tip pen on printed paper

38 x 25" (96.5 x 63.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Boy on Tire, Letter C, Zululand, Letter M #4

2001 · Oil stick on printed paper

38 x 25" (96.5 x 63.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Graduating Girl (Version 2) #1

2000 · Silkscreen ink and oil crayon on canvas

48 x 36" (121.9 x 91.4 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Untitled (Stranger in the Village/Hands #1)

2000 · Coal dust, printing ink, and adhesive on printed paper

38 1/2 x 50" (97.8 x 127 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Untitled (Stranger in the Village/Crowd #1)

2000 · Coal dust, printing ink, oilstick, and adhesive on screenprinted printed paper

40 x 54" (101.6 x 137.2 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Untitled (Stranger in the Village/Crowd #2)

2000 · Coal dust, printing ink, oilstick, and adhesive on screenprinted printed paper

40 x 53 1/4" (101.6 x 135.3 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Stranger in the Village #13

1998 · Enamel, silkscreen ink, oil and acrylic paint, gesso, and coal dust on canvas

193.1 × 335.3 cm (76 × 132 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Untitled

1998 · Ink and coal dust on paper

6 1/2 x 10 1/4" (16.5 x 26 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Study for 'White' series

1996 · Oil stick on paper

9 x 6 7/8" (22.9 x 17.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

White #19

1994 · Oilstick, gesso, and acrylic on canvas mounted on wood

7' x 60" (213.3 x 152.4 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

WattsOS

Cocaine (Pimps)

1993 · Oil stick, acrylic, and graphite pencil on linen

Overall: 32 3/16 × 32 × 1 1/2 in. (81.8 × 81.3 × 3.8 cm)

Whitney Museum of American Art

Untitled from Runaways

1993 · One from a portfolio of ten lithographs

composition (irreg.): 13 x 8 15/16" (33 x 22.7 cm); sheet: 16 x 12" (40.7 x 30.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Runaways

1993 · Portfolio of ten lithographs

composition: various dimensions; sheet (each): 16 x 12" (40.7 x 30.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Untitled from Runaways

1993 · One from a portfolio of ten lithographs

composition (irreg.): 11 13/16 x 8 15/16" (30 x 22.7 cm); sheet: 16 x 12" (40.7 x 30.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Untitled from Runaways

1993 · One from a portfolio of ten lithographs

composition (irreg.): 10 3/4 x 8 15/16" (27.3 x 22.7 cm); sheet: 16 x 12" (40.7 x 30.5 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

View all 45 artworks →

Artwork sources (7)

45 published of 78 catalogued · 70 with image

MoMA
33 publishedof 66 catalogued66 img
Whitney
4 published
The Met
3 published
Art Institute Chicago
2 published2 img
Tate
1 published1 img
Cleveland Museum of Art
1 published
Victoria & Albert
1 published1 img

Per-Artwork Provenance Chains (top 2)

2 entries · 1 sources

Untitled
2006 · Tate · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Untitled (Four Etchings)
1992 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number

Record

Images

16 assets

Wikipedia

Art Institute of Chicago

Glenn Ligon Interview at Camden Arts Centre 6m24s (cropped)

Wikimedia Commons (Instagram fallback)

Glenn Ligon Interview at Camden Arts Centre 6m24s

Wikimedia Commons (Instagram fallback)

Wikipedia

Wikimedia Commons

View all 16 media items →

Relationships

Peers & Context27

Sarah Charlesworthco-exhibited Sam Durantco-exhibited Douglas Hueblerco-exhibited Sara VanDerBeekco-exhibitedLiu Shiyuanco-exhibitedLuciano Pernaco-exhibited

Movements3

Installation Art Conceptual Art Video Art

Collections9

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Cleveland Museum of Art Art Institute of Chicago Victoria and Albert Museum Tate Whitney Museum of American Art

Institutional

Representation & Collections

Gallery

Paula Cooper Gallery

In collection

Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

In collection

Cleveland Museum of Art

In collection

Art Institute of Chicago

In collection

Victoria and Albert Museum

In collection

Tate

In collection

Whitney Museum of American Art

In collection

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Market

Auction sale history

Houses that have sold works by this artist at auction

Auction house

Christie's

Background

Education

Wesleyan University

Visual Arts

Network

Related Artists

Record

Exhibitions and timeline

Group Exhibition Tabula Rasa

2024