One of the most important and influential abstract visual artists in the U.S. has died: Sam Gilliam, a great colorist whose work influenced generations of artists, was 88 years old. His death was announced by the Pace Gallery, which had represented him since 2019. Gilliam was born in Tupelo, Miss., in 1933 as the seventh child of eight, born to a father who worked on the railroad and a homemaking mother. He attended the University of Louisville for both bachelor's and master'