Hank Willis Thomas

Upcoming
May 12 – Jun 6, 2026
Los Angeles

Pace will present new works by Hank Willis Thomas at its Los Angeles gallery from May 12 to June 6. Exploring the legacy of baseball in America—including references to Satchell Paige, Jackie Robinson and other pivotal figures, teams, and moments in the sport’s history—this presentation is part of a series of short-term, small-scale projects and presentations in the south gallery, adjacent to the main gallery space, featuring artists from within and beyond Pace’s program.

Through his multi-disciplinary practice, Thomas examines subjects related to mass media, popular culture, consumerism, identity, and the making and consumption of images, often employing shifts in perspective to deepen these explorations. The artist is also known for his galvanizing public works, which reflect a sustained personal commitment to community and social activism, often inviting participation and engagement from the viewer.

For this presentation at Pace Los Angeles, Thomas will debut a series of new, never-before-seen retroreflective works, which transform in different lighting. In one of these works, the artist depicts bold, dynamic figurations of Jackie Robinson at bat and as a prominent civil rights activist. With illumination, resonant phrases and gestures are revealed. As various elements converge and transform, Thomas’s retroreflective compositions shed light on new layers of images, ideas, and meanings that are hidden in plain sight.

Thomas will also show new sculptural works—one referencing Bo Jackson’s iconic act of breaking a bat over his helmet, rendered in stainless steel with black polish finish, and another capturing the precarious moment of a diving catch—as well as a mixed media quilt composed of Major League Baseball jerseys arranged in a Japanese-inspired Shippo, or Seven Treasures, pattern.

In addition to this presentation at Pace Los Angeles, Thomas will unveil his new monument to Rosa Parks at the Equal Justice Initiative’s Montgomery Square in Alabama this year, and he is also representing the United States as one of three invited artists for the official FIFA World Cup 2026 poster.