ARTIST STATEMENT

My process of DISTILLATION - Sequencing compilations of rhythmic arrangements, while mining and tempering tonal composure. The repercussions become a re-imagined evolution of past elements, by expanding and contracting in scale to access anew brimful of effects. The two mediums I currently work with, alcohol ink and encaustic paint, emit a translucent and reflective color-world in unexpected new ways, manifesting layers of surface allure and inward complexity to stimulate and soothe.

"It was only after I immersed myself into sculptural clay hand-building, and experimentation with post-fired wax finishing, which propelled me to paint with encaustic in 2006. Totally self-taught, I have developed my own unique techniques and identity, using my sculpting clay tools and skills in ways I had never imagined, and a blowtorch flame as my painting brush tool. In 2015, I experimented with painting alcohol ink on my encaustic, and now paint pure alcohol ink on different substrates. The fluidity of the medium echoes my encaustic medium, rounded, soft forms are created with compressed air instead of a blowtorch flame as my painting brush tool, rewarding me with additional unique patterning.”

CHRONOL0GY

Born in 1960 in the county of Somerset, England, Constance Williams grew up in the town of Glastonbury. As a child, she collected an enormous Lego collection, it became all-consuming, building and rebuilding protruding structures, creating colorful futuristic painted scenes, and topography made from anything that looked like it could be tectonic. She feverishly consumed chemistry sets; experimentation, a fascination that continues to present day. Her Bunsen burner was one of her prized possessions. Interestingly, one of her favorite encaustic painting tool today is her blowtorch. And her paintings exhibit excavation through her painted layers.

By 1968, she was playing the piano; she attended many recitals, and won just as many honor awards and trophies. While traveling and waiting to perform, she would sketch. Upon returning home, she painted from her sketches with oil paint, which her Grandmother had provided and encouraged her to use.

In 1973, she moved to a village just outside the city of Bath, where she schooled and majored in art; clay sculpture, oil painting, geography and history. She also played the tuba and trumpet.

In 1977, she moved to London, and interned for an advertising film production company, employing her creative skills for set design.

in 1978-1986, she married, and then moved to the United States and continued her artistic endeavor. She worked in the hotel, convention and meeting planning business. Her last conference as logistic coordinator for the Global Trade Foundation, a first between China and the US, entertaining over a hundred Chinese mayors from different cities; she studied mandarin for the conference.

In 1986-2004, she remarried to her current husband and champion, Miller Williams. Her entrepreneurial spirit has led her to have a number of companies, which always required use of her creative skills. Most notably, as CEO and owner of the international award-winning Constance Williams Collection, she raised the bar in the greetings industry for innovative use of materials, and set a new standard for collaborative efforts between businesses and social programs. She continued painting and studying with classically trained oil painter Mary Russell. During these years she traveled globally extensively.

In 2004, she settled in Asheville, North Carolina. This was the natural result of visiting Western North Carolina since the mid 80's, where she has a summer home in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Linville, which has inspired so many of her vaporous excavated paintings. Linville was where she had her wedding in 1988, atop Roseborough Ridge, now known as Little Bald Mountain.

In 2005-06, she decided to revisit her early roots in clay and sculpture, and immersed herself in workshops with Christina Cordova, Melisa Cadell and Lisa Clague, to name just a few amazing American clay artists.

In 2006-2007, she established her first clay studio in Asheville’s emerging River Arts District. Her clay works were non-functional, hand-built, fluid, incised large vessels, and figurative pieces, often incorporating metal. Several fellow clay artists were experimenting with wax on the surface of their figurative works, which inspired her to experiment with full color encaustic.

In 2008-2015, she established the first dedicated encaustic studio in the River Arts District. Her studio, which was open to the public daily, allowing direct conversation with her customers, and propelling her creative direction by the number of sales.

2015-Present secured, defined and fully developed a unique series of paintings, that expand and contract elements from each other. Her body of work now includes alcohol inks with her encaustic paint on board, on Yupo paper and aluminum. Her meteoric success is commensurate by her volume of paintings to sales and work ethic. Her studio is now closed to the public, except for commission clients.

PRESS

Constance Williams encaustic paintings are found in homes and businesses around the world and have been seen on Public Broadcast Television, in numerous print and on-line publications, such as -

The New York Times • Wall Street Journal • Artsee Magazine, North Carolina Home & Garden • VERVE Magazine • Rapid River Arts & Culture Magazine • The Laurel of Asheville.

Asheville Convention & Visitors Bureau's tourism campaign. The studio was filmed in the Summer of 2011 and photographed Spring of 2013.

Showtime Network - Leased paintings for shows.

Historic Grove Park Inn, Asheville NC - Exhibitions.

Mission Hospital, Asheville has a collection of her large works.

Duke Energy, NC has a collection of her original BURST series.

She served as President of Asheville's historic River Arts District 2010-2011.