August 30 –October 1, 2017
Ordered Complexities
New Paintings by Patricia Williams
Opening Reception ▪ Friday, September 8, 6-8:30 pm
Meet the Artists ▪ Saturday, September 23, 1-4 pm
“Both science and art have to do with ordered complexity.” – L. L. Whyte, 1957
In 2015, a lively discussion of Pi Day (March 14, based on π’s value of 3.141592...) inspired Patricia Williams to paint a π pie. This led to a series of works that seek to translate mathematical and scientific principles into paintings that express the essence of a concept. Whimsical and colorful, the paintings integrate the artist’s lifelong fascination with science, math and creativity in all its forms.
“Creativity is one of the most basic traits of humanity, but we articulate it in different ways, depending on our inclinations and abilities,” Ms. Williams says. “I hope that art people will gain a little appreciation for math and science and that math and science folks will enjoy seeing their subject matter portrayed as a different kind of art.”
The paintings are comprised of layers of transparent watercolor and watercolor pencil or water-soluble graphite on Multimedia Artboard™, a rigid paper substrate. In some paintings, intense colors and murky darks all but obliterate the underlying text. In others, wispy lines of water-soluble graphite are punctuated with jolts of color. The paintings are driven by content, but content is secondary to the interplay of color and form.
A native of North Carolina, Ms. Williams graduated from North Carolina State University with a degree in engineering. She took up painting in mid-life after starting a second career in communications. She now divides her time between Falls Church and Albemarle County in Virginia. Ms. Williams had great fun creating these paintings because they allowed her to integrate the various aspects of her life experiences.
This is the artist’s second solo show at Touchstone Gallery. Her work has also been shown by 311 Gallery in Raleigh, NC; the Firnew Farm Artists Circle in Madison, VA; The Art League and the Central Virginia Watercolor Guild among others.