Sue Williams Retrospective Exhibition at Belvedere 21: Feminist Art and Body Politics

This comprehensive retrospective showcases the work of American painter Sue Williams (b. 1954), exploring her critical feminist agenda through themes of power, oppression, and gender relations since the late 1980s. The exhibition features paintings, drawings, and collages spanning her entire career.

In spring 2026, the Belvedere 21 will host a comprehensive retrospective of American painter Sue Williams (b. 1954). Since the late 1980s, Williams has critically engaged with themes of power and oppression, gender relations, and body politics in her paintings and drawings. She consistently pursues a feminist agenda within painting, employing a variety of painterly strategies to navigate this traditionally patriarchal domain. Her early works are characterized by a cartoon-like style confronting sexualized violence, while her later style evolved to a gestural, abstract visual language dominated by vibrant color and dynamic brushwork, though still imbued with themes of the body, power, and violence. Recent works synthesize these elements, creating intricate arrangements that oscillate between figuration and abstraction, and address structural violence, trauma, memory, and resilience. The exhibition features paintings, drawings, and collages that span all phases of the artist’s career, from the late 1980s to the present. The compelling force of Sue Williams’s work lies in the simultaneity of the personal and the political, humorous caricature, almost shocking explicitness, and painterly gestures.

Tickets are available for purchase, with options to buy and save online. Visitors are directed to the official ticketing page for time slot tickets. Opening hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 11 am to 6 pm, with a late night on Thursdays until 9 pm.