The Institute of Contemporary Art Miami is opening "Richard Hunt: Pressure," the first institutional survey of the late sculptor since his death in 2023 at age 88. The exhibition, running through March during Miami Art Week, features 28 sculptures from 1955 to 2010, drawn from Hunt's seven-decade career in which he completed over 160 public commissions and 170 solo exhibitions. The show highlights Hunt's innovative use of industrial materials and abstract forms, while also exploring the dual meaning of "pressure"—both the physical force used in his metalworking and the societal pressures he faced as a Black artist during the Civil Rights era.
The exhibition matters because it positions Hunt, one of the most prolific public sculptors in the United States, for renewed recognition at the center of the art world. His work, which includes a monument to Emmett Till completed shortly before his death, demonstrates how abstract sculpture can engage with social justice without resorting to figuration. By presenting Hunt's legacy during Miami Art Week, the ICA Miami offers an international audience a chance to reassess an artist whose contributions to American sculpture and civil rights activism have often been overlooked.