Cathy Williams
In Safe Keeping Exhibit

Artist Statement

I am an artist with a deep, personal connection to my work using art to explore complex themes of memory, reality, and human experience. Within the theme of “In Safe Keeping,” I see my work as a conversation with what we choose to protect: our memories, our sense of self, our fleeting connections. My studio process becomes a kind of emotional archaeology unearthing and safeguarding what remains of personal and collective experience. The resulting surfaces act as quiet keepers of vulnerability, evidence, and renewal. My approach blends intuition with experimentation and highlights my desire to create a visual language that is both visceral and open to interpretation. The disjointed forms and unconventional use of materials, like my rotary sander, suggest a process that embraces both destruction and reconstruction, perhaps symbolizing how personal experiences and emotions can be broken down and then rebuilt. My process mirrors how memories and identities evolve - shifting, layered, and never entirely fixed. My use of color fields and textures position me in the tradition of expressionism, yet my focus on "living" characters suggests a unique and intimate world where even the abstracted figures carry a sense of life and authenticity. The spiritual influences and dream-like qualities add a layer of mysticism to my work giving it an almost narrative quality inviting the viewer to engage in a kind of visual storytelling. My paintings speak to our universal human desire to feel alive, which resonates as a profound statement on the purpose of art - connecting us to our most basic human experiences through raw, unfiltered creativity.

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Cathy Williams