Sheila Hicks. a little bit of a lot of things

The white cover of a book titled Sheila Hicks: a little bit of a lot of things. The text is printed in a black serif font, with SHEILA and HICKS in large capital letters at the top and bottom, and the subtitle in smaller, lowercase letters in the middle.

A close-up of a white book cover with black text. The text, in German and English, describes Paris-based American artist Sheila Hicks and her pioneering work in textile art. At the bottom are the logos of Kunst Museum St. Gallen and Hatje Cantz, along with an ISBN and a barcode.

A thick, white paperback book lying on a white surface, viewed from an angle. The cover text in a black serif font reads, SHEILA a little bit of a lot of things HICKS. The fore-edge of the book's pages is decorated with a blue, black, and white abstract pattern.

A close-up, angled view of a book's spine with an exposed Coptic stitch binding. The thick stack of white pages is sewn together with bright blue and aqua thread. Large, black letters are printed on the fore-edge of the pages, creating a textual pattern along the spine.

A photograph in an open book shows a contemporary art installation made of thick, off-white rope. A dense curtain of ropes hangs vertically from an unseen point, pooling into a large, tangled mass on the grey concrete floor below.

An open book showing a two-page spread. The left page is blank with the number 90 at the bottom. The right page features a photograph of an art installation in a sparse, industrial room with a concrete floor. In the foreground, a circular patch of orange pigment on the floor contains a crumpled orange object. Behind it stands a simple, light-colored stone bench. To the right, a small television on a black pedestal displays a black-and-white image. A large metal door and draped cloths are in the background.

An open book showing a two-page spread of an art gallery with a large, central installation. The piece is a tall, conical pile of soft, rounded cushions in a gradient of blue, from dark teal and navy at the wide base to pale sky blue at the peak. The gallery has an industrial feel with a high ceiling, exposed pipes, and a concrete floor. Other artworks are visible on the white walls in the background.

A table of contents for an art publication, displayed on a white page in a light gray, sans-serif font. The text is arranged vertically in six blocks, each providing a section title in German and English, along with corresponding page numbers. The content is about the artist Sheila Hicks and includes sections for exhibition views, a work list, a conversation with Robert Storr, an essay by Gianni Jetzer, an artist talk, and a biography.

A tall, vertical sculpture made of thick, twisted ropes in shades of dark blue, grey, and brown sits on a white pedestal. The ropes hang densely from the top and coil in a pile at the base, set against a plain concrete wall in a gallery space. The image is on the left side of a page, with a large white space to the right.

A view of a modern art exhibition in an industrial space with concrete floors. In the center, a thick pillar is covered in cascading off-white ropes that pool on the floor. Two circular, textured artworks hang on the walls: a vibrant red one near a tall window on the left, and an earth-toned one on the right. A long, red and grey textile hangs next to the window.

A two-page book spread displays two distinct art installations. On the left, an outdoor installation from 1977-1987 shows shredded and dyed pink and red fabric hanging like a waterfall in a dark stone courtyard. On the right, a 2010 gallery installation features numerous thick, colorful, fabric-wrapped tubes cascading from an upper-level balcony and piling onto the floor.

A black-and-white two-page spread from a book, pages 142 and 143. On the left, a photograph of an art installation shows a massive accumulation of crumpled khaki shirts wrapped around a pillar and hanging in a long line from the ceiling. On the right, a photograph shows a gallery with large, woven tapestries hanging on the walls next to an open, arched doorway.

A page from a book, number 145, featuring three textile art pieces with captions. On the left, a large photograph shows a room with a red and purple arched tapestry titled Palacio Iturbide hanging on a wall next to stone pillars. On the right, two smaller, vertically oriented, abstract weavings are shown; the top one is mainly red and blue, titled Leaving, and the bottom one is predominantly blue, titled Melvin Talking.

A two-page book spread displays two distinct artworks side-by-side. On the left, a photograph shows long, wide, colorful ribbons of red, blue, and green linen wrapped around cork, coiled and cascading down a rustic stone staircase. On the right, a vibrant abstract oil painting features energetic, vertical brushstrokes in deep blues, purples, and yellows, suggesting reeds or tall grass reflected in water.

A diptych comparing two artworks. On the left is a close-up of a 1969 textile relief featuring thick, knotted tan fibers over vertical strands of blue, green, and yellow. On the right is an aerial view of a 2016 garden installation where a woman stands amidst large, swirling green forms on a vibrant ground of red and blue fibers.

A book page with two columns of text, German on the left and English on the right, both describing an art exhibition by Sheila Hicks titled a little bit of a lot of things. The text details her first institutional solo show in Switzerland and her work with textile materials. The page numbers 168 and 169 are visible at the bottom.

A page from a book with German text on the left and a black-and-white photograph on the right. The photo, taken by Sheila Hicks in the 1960s, shows a man in a hat and light-colored clothes standing outdoors in Guerrero, Mexico. He holds up a large, intricately woven rectangular textile with a geometric pattern and fringe at the bottom. A building and foliage are visible in the background.

A two-page magazine spread with columns of English text on the left page and German on the right. Both pages are interspersed with small photos of a group of people in a gallery looking at a large, abstract blue and white sculpture.

A diptych layout with a color photo on the left and white space on the right. The photo shows an elderly woman with white hair, wearing a red sweater and a dark red shawl, standing in a garden with green vines and purple flowers. The white space has the words Biografie and Biography.

Sheila Hicks. a little bit of a lot of things

€ 50.00

VAT included. Shipping costs will be calculated at checkout

Contributions by: Robert Storr, Gianni Jetzer

Edited by: Gianni Jetzer

February 2025, 264 Pages, 500 Photos

Paperback with Lay-Flat Binding

156mm x 220mm

ISBN: 978-3-7757-5978-6

HATJE CANTZ VERLAG
Mommsenstr. 27
10629 Berlin
Germany
E-Mail: contact@hatjecantz.de

According to Article 9(7) of the GPSR Regulation, no additional security information is required for books without supplements or special functions.

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A pioneer of textile modernism

Sheila Hicks has made wool, linen, and silk her central media, pushing the boundaries of traditional textile art. Her works combine color, form, and material in novel ways and explore architectural dimensions. As a pioneer of textile conceptual art, Hicks has developed a distinctive visual language over six decades, from finely woven miniatures to monumental installations that open up new perspectives on the possibilities of art. This book contains views of Sheila Hicks's exhibition a little bit of a lot of things at the Kunstmuseum St. Gallen as well as a conversation with the curator Rob Storr and an essay by Gianni Jetzer. It also documents a master class held by the artist in St. Gallen and contains previously unpublished images.

Sheila Hicks (*1934 in Hastings, Nebraska) studied art at Yale University under Josef Albers. She discovered her passion for textiles while traveling through South America. In the 1960s, she established herself in Paris and created large-scale installations that combined color, form, and material. Hicks is considered a pioneer of conceptual art with textiles and exhibits in renowned museums worldwide. She lives in Paris.

EXHIBITION

Kunstmuseum St. Gallen

February 4-May 14, 2023