“My focus is on large-scale installations in the public realm, exploring symbolic and historical intersections between art, technology, nature and humanity. Because art set in public venues can reach a vast audience — and, if the concept is a compelling one — I believe it has the power to enrich many lives.” — Stuart Williams
Photo by Andrzej Bialuski
“…a fusion of nature, technology and art.” — Peter Selz, MoMA, New York
View a brief video about the artist.
A UNIQUE SKILL SET
With a track record of challenging and ambitious art installations on two continents, Williams’ often monumental-scale site works have garnered critical acclaim around the globe. Whether set in an urban center, or in the natural world, his head-turning, mesmerizing works have captivated thousands.
Holding a degree in architecture, Williams leads teams of engineers and specialists tuned to the unique needs of each project. His skill in successfully orchestrating his installations from concept to realization is evident in the meticulous planning and execution of his projects which often involve complex logistical, political and technical challenges. With extensive experience working with community groups and governmental agencies in both the U.S. and abroad, he envisions evocative concepts that resonate with the essence of each locale.
BIOGRAPHYWilliams graduated from the College of Architecture at the University of Michigan, where in addition to his degree in architecture his studies included urban planning, art history, sculpture, engineering and cultural anthropology. Soon after graduation, his interests gravitated decidedly to fine art, and more definitively to site-specific, environmental art. The land artists of the 60s caught Williams’ attention — as did the work of Turrell and Flavin — and so did the luminous colors of Diebenkorn, Rothko and Matisse. His education provided him with an intimate understanding of materials, historical context, grand scale, and three dimensional space. It also gave him the insight in his work to speak to the unique qualities of each new site he addresses. All of these factors helped to propel him into the realm of large-scale environmental art.
His most ambitious installation, “Luminous Earth Grid,” swept over an expanse equal to 8 American football fields in rolling hills 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of San Francisco. It was an electrified array of nearly 2000, 3.3 meter (4 foot) energy-efficient fluorescent lamps arranged in a grid formation which smoothly conformed to the fluid contours of the terrain. “It’s like a computer generated image come to life,” said the artist. The glowing green grid can be seen as an icon of computer imaging technology, which in this ‘real life’ incarnation, gently melds with the flowing topography of a lovely landscape... a dream-like vision of symbiotic unity.” Cosponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts, and Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco, the project drew international critical acclaim. Peter Selz, curator at MoMA, New York, and founding father of the UC/ Berkeley Art Museum, said “It emanated a sense of the romantic sublime with its aura of surprise and wonder.”
Another installation — sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts — opened in Dresden, Germany marking the 70th annual observance of the bombing of Dresden in the closing days of World War Two. In homage to the city's survival and renewal, and to honor the remembrance of an iconic event in the horrors of war, Williams installed “Lebensatem/Dresden” (“Breath of Life/Dresden”) at the historic Dresden Cathedral (c. 1738). Waves of light, rising and falling on the facade at the pace of human breath, caused the Cathedral to appear “to breathe.” For nearly 4 years, Williams worked hand-in-hand with Dresden city officials in pinpointing the Cathedral as the ideal site for the project, and with a team of engineers in solving the formidable technical challenges of the installation, while also embarking on a challenging years-long trek to obtain an array of permits from the Cathedral, from the Dresden Department of Monument Preservation and from the Provincial Government of Saxony. “Breath of Life/Dresden” drew words of praise from the White House, from Buckingham Palace and from the United Nations.
Said Williams, “Given Dresden’s devastation in an all-consuming firestorm — a searing conflagration sparked by 3 days and nights of air raids that devoured the city's oxygen… suffocating and incinerating tens of thousands — I think the vision of one of the city's most treasured historic landmarks appearing to breathe is deeply moving.” The project was nominated for the “Global Fine Art Awards.” They called it... “an emblematic artwork of timeless and far reaching importance.” A documentary film is in development.
Williams has been the recipient of grants and commissions from a wide variety of organizations, among them, the U.S. Embassy in Berlin; The City of Dresden, Germany; Pacific Gas & Electric, San Francisco; the LEF Foundation, St. Helena, CA; the Rene and Veronica di Rosa Foundation, Napa, CA; the Osram Sylvania Corporation; Anheuser Busch; the Cockayne Fund, Louisville, KY; Columbus Public Art 2012; and an anonymous foundation in New York. Williams has been an invited speaker at numerous venues including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Art Institute, the University of California, Davis, the Global Fine Art Awards in New York, and at the United Nations at a seminar titled “Unlearning Intolerance.”
Another installation — sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts — opened in Dresden, Germany marking the 70th annual observance of the bombing of Dresden in the closing days of World War Two. In homage to the city's survival and renewal, and to honor the remembrance of an iconic event in the horrors of war, Williams installed “Lebensatem/Dresden” (“Breath of Life/Dresden”) at the historic Dresden Cathedral (c. 1738). Waves of light, rising and falling on the facade at the pace of human breath, caused the Cathedral to appear “to breathe.” For nearly 4 years, Williams worked hand-in-hand with Dresden city officials in pinpointing the Cathedral as the ideal site for the project, and with a team of engineers in solving the formidable technical challenges of the installation, while also embarking on a challenging years-long trek to obtain an array of permits from the Cathedral, from the Dresden Department of Monument Preservation and from the Provincial Government of Saxony. “Breath of Life/Dresden” drew words of praise from the White House, from Buckingham Palace and from the United Nations.
Said Williams, “Given Dresden’s devastation in an all-consuming firestorm — a searing conflagration sparked by 3 days and nights of air raids that devoured the city's oxygen… suffocating and incinerating tens of thousands — I think the vision of one of the city's most treasured historic landmarks appearing to breathe is deeply moving.” The project was nominated for the “Global Fine Art Awards.” They called it... “an emblematic artwork of timeless and far reaching importance.” A documentary film is in development.
Williams has been the recipient of grants and commissions from a wide variety of organizations, among them, the U.S. Embassy in Berlin; The City of Dresden, Germany; Pacific Gas & Electric, San Francisco; the LEF Foundation, St. Helena, CA; the Rene and Veronica di Rosa Foundation, Napa, CA; the Osram Sylvania Corporation; Anheuser Busch; the Cockayne Fund, Louisville, KY; Columbus Public Art 2012; and an anonymous foundation in New York. Williams has been an invited speaker at numerous venues including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Art Institute, the University of California, Davis, the Global Fine Art Awards in New York, and at the United Nations at a seminar titled “Unlearning Intolerance.”
The artist’s work has been published around the world in art journals, newspapers, art blogs, fine art books, and numerous other publications including Art in America, Public Art Review, Abitare (Milan), LIFE Magazine, France Soir (Paris) and Kunstforum International (Cologne). Williams’ most monumental installation, “Luminous Earth Grid,” was recently featured in “Art Installations: A Visual Guide,” Roads Publishing (Dublin). The publisher describes the book as “a visual journey and exploration of the most significant and groundbreaking highlights of installation art since the 1960s. In 2022, the artist's work was featured in a large format hard cover book titled “Volume Three,” a co-production of ERG Media, London; L'Art de L'Automobile, Paris and Porsche, Stuttgart. The book presents in-depth curated stories with a detailed exploration of fine art, architecture and design.
Williams is currently pursuing several major installations which are in planning and/or development:
Williams is currently pursuing several major installations which are in planning and/or development:
"Sewing Needle”
A monumental sewing needle pierces the fluidly undulating coast range of Big Sur, California, alluding to a geologist's description of how “the folded hills of coastal California have been stitched together over the eons,” as plate tectonic forces have repeatedly shoved the Pacific Plate up against the western edge of the North American Plate.
A monumental sewing needle pierces the fluidly undulating coast range of Big Sur, California, alluding to a geologist's description of how “the folded hills of coastal California have been stitched together over the eons,” as plate tectonic forces have repeatedly shoved the Pacific Plate up against the western edge of the North American Plate.
“Song of the Trees”
In ever changing combinations and groupings, specimen trees across an arboretum come to life with gentle waves of uplighting. An original audio component — an abstract blend of deeply resonant natural sounds — enhances a Zen-like sense of calm.
In ever changing combinations and groupings, specimen trees across an arboretum come to life with gentle waves of uplighting. An original audio component — an abstract blend of deeply resonant natural sounds — enhances a Zen-like sense of calm.
“Floating Ocean Ring”
Like an immense jeweled necklace that has been tossed into the sea, a circular ring of mirrored spheres — 1 kilometer in diameter — glistens in the sun as it floats and bobs on the Pacific just off the California coast.
Like an immense jeweled necklace that has been tossed into the sea, a circular ring of mirrored spheres — 1 kilometer in diameter — glistens in the sun as it floats and bobs on the Pacific just off the California coast.
Stuart Williams at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin in February 2015, following his successful installation of “Breath of Life/Dresden” at the historic
Dresden Cathedral, marking the 70th Anniversary Observance of the WWII bombing of Dresden. Photo © Craig Collins.