Jeff Williams

There is Not Anything which Returns to Nothing, July 2011  

In 'There is Not Anything Which Returns to Nothing,' Jeff Williams will exhibit a series of sculptures and photographs, along with a stratum of accumulated site-specific experiments. Various materials relating to the exterior architecture and interior dwelling will undergo a series of processes that slowly wear down these structures.

Materials for 'There is Not Anything Which Returns to Nothing' are collected from a wide range of sources, from contemporary building materials (Greenstar Cellulose Blocks, Allusion extruded aluminum foam, etc.) to things housed in our everyday spaces, including food and plant life. The physical space at Grizzly Grizzly will be transformed to accommodate assorted makeshift equipment that promotes stress and erosion. These devices of decay will be constructed using "make your own" diagrams, conservation manuals, and low-fi kinetic tinkering. The resulting sculptures will patiently wear on the materials on hand.

Artist Bio

Jeff Williams was born in Cambridge, MA and raised in Plymouth, MI. He studied at Center for Creative Studies in Detroit before getting his BFA at the Columbus College of Art and Design and his MFA from Syracuse University. Williams is currently an Assistant Professor of Sculpture at The University of Texas at Austin. Williams has recently been selected for an Artpace artist residency and is one of three finalists for the Arthouse Texas Prize (both fall 2011). In 2008, Williams was awarded the Leonore Annenberg Fellowship at the American Academy in Rome. From 2006-2008, Williams was an artist-in-residence at The Core Residency Program, Museum of Fine Art Houston. Past exhibitions of Williams' work include the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome, Italy; Project Row Houses in Houston, TX; the Soap Factory in Minneapolis, MN; LAXART in Los Angeles, CA; Okay Mountain in Austin, TX; Recess Art Activities and the Arsenal Gallery in New York, NY. Reviews and articles on his work have been included in the LA Times, New York Arts Magazine, Art Us, San Diego Union Tribune, The Austin American Statesman, Houston Chronicle, and Ducts.org.