Theaster Gates, Glorious Robe in Kyoto and Art Basel medal honor
Published on 08/21/2026 at 16:19 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Theaster Gates brings his textile-based practice to Kyoto with the exhibition Glorious Robe at Hosoo Gallery. As Hosoo Gallery states, the joint project runs from April 11 to August 30, 2026 and centers on garments and vessels born from African and Japanese sartorial traditions. Hosoo Gallery exhibition page
The Kyoto exhibition Glorious Robe
In Glorious Robe, Gates presents series such as Dashikimono, obi works and a new vessel that interlace West African dashiki forms with the Japanese kimono, using Hosoo’s Nishijin textile expertise dating back to 1688. Hosoo emphasizes that the clothes and ceramic pieces are treated as receptacles of history, philosophy and communal spirit. Hosoo Gallery exhibition page
The Dashikimono garments merge the Black Power movement’s dashiki symbol with kimono traditions, while obi sashes weave in the Black Liberation Movement, memorializing Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Medgar Evers through patterns drawn from Hosoo’s archive of around 20,000 designs. The exhibition also includes the wrapped ceramic work Vessel, referencing tea ceremony fabrics and gospel music recordings.
Art Basel Awards medal for Established Artists
Parallel to the Kyoto show, Gates has been named a medalist in the Established Artists category at the 2026 Art Basel Awards, as Chicago gallery GRAY reports. The awards recognize practices with lasting influence across borders and disciplines, with medalists honored during Art Basel in June and in year-round campaigns. GRAY announcement
GRAY underlines that Gates’ practice engages space theory, land development, film, performance and sculpture to translate and preserve objects linked to overlooked moments in Black American history, reframing materials as carriers of religious, political and social meaning rather than mere aesthetics.
More news and background on Theaster Gates
For additional reporting on Theaster Gates, from exhibitions like Glorious Robe to awards and commissions, the AD HOC NEWS archive offers compact updates and contextual articles.
The work across textiles and archives
Gates is known for weaving craft, performance and urban intervention into installations that revive endangered archives and spaces, from the Johnson Publishing Company image materials to Malcolm X documents preserved by Japanese translators Ei Nagata and Haruhi Ishitani. Hosoo notes that Glorious Robe grew out of Gates’ 2024 solo exhibition Afro Mingei at Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, where Afro-Japanese ceramic and architectural hybrids were first staged. Mori Art Museum exhibition information
Current position and dates
Within the 30-day window, Gates’ most concrete dated public presence is the closing stretch of Glorious Robe at Hosoo Gallery in Kyoto, which remains on view until August 30, 2026 as a free-admission exhibition focused on textile-based collaborations.
Key facts on Theaster Gates
- Artist: Theaster Gates
- Medium / Genre: Sculpture and installation (archives, ceramics, textiles)
- Born: 1973, Chicago, United States
- Place(s) of practice: Studio and Rebuild Foundation projects in Chicago
- Active since: Early 2000s, with early exhibitions linking ceramics and community space in Chicago
- Key work groups: Afro-Mingei, Unto Thee, OH, YOU'VE GOT TO COME BACK TO THE CITY, Glorious Robe
- Current/last exhibition: Glorious Robe, Hosoo Gallery, Kyoto, April 11–August 30, 2026
- Major collections: Tate (London), Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Studio Museum in Harlem (New York), Mori Art Museum (Tokyo)
- Awards: Guggenheim Fellowship (2025), Isamu Noguchi Award (2023), National Building Museum Vincent Scully Prize (2023), Art Basel Awards 2026 medalist (Established Artists)
- Next date: August 30, 2026, closing day of Glorious Robe at Hosoo Gallery, Kyoto
Frequently asked questions about Theaster Gates
Where is Theaster Gates currently on view?
As of late August 2026, Gates’ textiles and ceramic works are on view in the exhibition Glorious Robe at Hosoo Gallery in Kyoto, which runs from April 11 to August 30, 2026.
What is the focus of Glorious Robe in Kyoto?
Glorious Robe centers on hybrid garments such as Dashikimono, obi sashes and a new vessel that combine African dashiki and Japanese kimono traditions with Black Liberation histories, using Nishijin textile techniques.
Which recent award has Theaster Gates received?
In 2026, Gates was named a medalist in the Established Artists category at the Art Basel Awards, recognizing his cross-disciplinary practice in sculpture, performance, urban transformation and archival preservation.
This article was produced with a.i. support and editorially reviewed. All statements without guarantee; auction results, exhibition dates and awards may change at short notice.
