The Tampa Museum of Art invites visitors to step into an immersive new installation by Tampa-based artist Samantha Modder. Opening July 25, 2026, "Samantha Modder: Her Hair Like the Sun and Clouds" will transform the Museum’s 4,000-square-foot first-floor atrium with monumental, floor-to-ceiling black-and-white illustrations. Created from Modder’s intricate ballpoint pen drawings, the installation depicts a surreal world of larger-than-life Black female figures who dream, dance, weave, and reach outward toward the viewer.
Tightly coiled locks of hair flow between the individual scenes, connecting the figures and creating a cloud-like canopy throughout the atrium. Born in Lagos, Nigeria, and raised in Sri Lanka, Modder lives and works in Tampa and serves as Assistant Professor of Art and Design at the University of Tampa. Her work explores power, resistance, imagination, and childhood wonder while inviting visitors to enter a world filled with curiosity and possibility. "Samantha Modder: Her Hair Like the Sun and Clouds" will be on view from July 25, 2026, through July 4, 2027. The exhibition is included with general admission. Plan your visit and purchase tickets at TampaMuseum.org.
