Judith Williams
Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, Judith Williams spent two decades immersed in the world of dance, specializing in ballet and modern jazz. Upon relocating to San Francisco, She pursued her passion for art. She attended San Francisco City College, California College of the Arts, and Sonoma State University, obtaining a BFA in painting in 1995. Williams continued a Post-Baccalaureate Tutorial under the guidance of accomplished Bay Area painters and professors Chester Arnold and Bob Nugent.
Williams has exhibited extensively in the Bay Area and nationally throughout her career, receiving numerous awards and recognitions. She has been awarded Honorable Mentions at exhibitions held at the Marin Museum of Contemporary Art in 2020, 2018, 2015, and 2010, as well as the COVER Contest for Marin Magazine in 2008. In addition, she achieved First in Class for Oil Painting at the Marin County Fair in 1993 and received the Distinguished Art Award, Honorable Mention, and the Barbara McQuaid Award of Excellence at the Marin County Fair in 1999. Her work can be found in public and private collections across the United States and Paris. Furthermore, she has conducted workshops in California and Hawaii, focusing on encaustic techniques. Currently, Williams resides in Mill Valley, CA.
Drawn to the allure of layered paint and the intriguing glimpses of traces underneath, Williams was seduced by the Ancient Greek method of encaustic painting, combining beeswax, resin, and pigments. She layers swatches of collage papers, followed by luscious translucent wax, and incorporates painting, scraping, and drawing into and on the wax, creating captivating compositions. Additionally, she works with other mediums, such as oil, acrylics, and cold wax.
Williams states, “Through my aesthetics, I search for ways to follow my curiosities about life. With no answers the search is endless, and the process satisfying.”
Artist Statement
This series of abstract paintings reflects my interest and fascination with nature’s visual details. Seeing the patterns, structures, and repetitions stimulate a curiosity and wonder of “How this all began?” Bringing my imagination to this conundrum, I fabricate and re-imagine my environment with lines, organic forms, strong contrasts, and patterns. I paint and draw with acrylics, charcoal, ink, occasional collage, and oil pastels. I use gestural brushstrokes to describe my sensation of moving through the atmosphere of organic elements. I feel myself moving and floating in space while looking down through the layers and searching for details. A visual journey unfolds. My love of movement and rhythm from my passion for dance feeds my visual vocabulary.