HOUGH
Williams
changed the
format and
discipline from
T
which he conducted his stud-ies,
his artwork still reflects
his interest in the environ-ment
and the complexities
surrounding both natural and
man-made structures. His
paintings, which are largely
nonrepresentational, are
often reflections on photo-graphs
he takes of buildings
and interesting scenes he
finds while exploring new
places. Williams is an avid
hiker and appreciates the
outdoors and is often travel-ing.
Along with taking photos
in the places that he visits, he
incorporates found objects
from various locales into his
mixed-media works.
Williams’ relationship
to the environment is par-ticularly
apparent in his
“Cartography” series, some
of which are currently hang-ing
in New Elements Gallery
in downtown Wilmington.
One of these, titled “A New
Beginning IV,” vividly recalls
a bus or train system map.
The piece, a 19.75-inch by
14.5-inch mixed media work on paper, is incredibly colorful and
sections of the composition appear to denote varying topography
or a complex city design. Brightly colored lines run from clustered,
gridlike interior spaces out to the edge of the image. Many of these
lines culminate in small diamond shapes, as if highlighting impor-tant
Cartography Series No. 9: I’m Not There Yet No. 8, 24 x 24 inches, mixed media on canvas.
spots or stops along a transportation route. The piece is com-posed
primarily in acrylic paints along with sections of a map, which
Williams cut into a grid-like design, small pieces of paper, and other
media like pen, pencil and possibly crayon or colored pastel. In this
way, the media Williams uses coincide with the subject matter —
the assortment of tools and materials used is reminiscent of the vari-ety
of places and people inherent to any cityscape. In this piece and
others like it, Williams creates an image that is diverse, vibrant and
full of a variety of experiences, especially if you take the extra time to
look closely.
Williams describes the way that environment and art making collide
for him.
“I feel like the things that I see are always abstract,” he says. “I end
up just using the camera as a way to start the process. Once I have
an image, I blow it up on a wall and use a variety of pieces from that
image. But then I often use this process to add several different images
to one painting, layering lines in different directions and selecting dif-ferent
angles from each. After that, I’ll often take out some lines and
paint over some areas and continue to journey through the thought
and image. Painting is almost like a journey itself for me, and the final
painting functions as a map of that journey.”
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WBM march 2019