East Gallery
Bill Williams
Textures of the West
March 17 thru May 11, 2008
Bill Williams has an interesting method of recording the places and moments that touch his soul. A professional artist for more than 50 years, Williams says that before brush touches paper or canvas, he considers the mood and the feeling of the subject that inspired him. “I paint and photograph images that have drawn me toward connections of the past, present and between different cultures from around the world.”
When he is on location, he then begins the first day by touring with his camera shooting many rolls of film. In the viewfinder, he sees the image he wants to paint. The next day, he returns to that location to sketch and paint the scene, completing about 80 percent of the painting onsite. He takes notes about the light and colors and saves the final touches for the studio, capturing those qualities that the photo cannot, such as values, colors and edges. Occasionally in the studio he will redesign the painting using the slides he took and the original painting as a field sketch.
Working from his Norman studio, he has become a devotee of plein-air painting, a French term which means “in the open air,” and is particularly used to describe the act of painting outdoors. He has traveled across the United States and throughout the world painting and taking photographs in places such as Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Spain, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Italy, Africa, and Israel.
For 24 years he worked as the Art Director for the University of Oklahoma publications office and as a graphic designer, photographer and illustrator producing thousands of publications. An Oklahoma native, Williams earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Tulsa. He has studied painting from Oklahoma’s own Charles Banks Wilson and with internationally known watercolor artist Milford Zornes of California and credits both of these teachers for inspiring him.
Zornes advised him that in order to be the best artist you can be, it is “important to have a design that conveys a message, and that every work of art convey a feeling or emotion.” Williams explained that he paints images with a conscious regard for the principles of design and feels a sense of duty to portray a positive statement in a traditional style.
Sponsored by the Oklahoma Arts Council. For more information contact Scott Cowan at 405.521.2931 or scott@arts.ok.gov.
The East Gallery is located on the 1st floor of the State Capitol and open daily from 8:00-5:30.