9/2/03

Lake Michigan College Art Exhibit Features
Portraits by Robert Williams

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The works of Robert Williams will be featured in the Lake Michigan College art gallery in the William Hessel Library on the Napier Avenue Campus. An opening reception, which is free and open to the public, will be held on Wednesday, September 10, from 6:30 - 8 p.m.

BENTON TOWNSHIP, MI - Lake Michigan College's first art exhibit of the new academic year will feature portraits by St. Joseph artist Robert Williams. More than 25 studies will be included in the exhibit that is on display in the William Hessel Library art gallery on LMC's Napier Avenue Campus. An opening reception will be held on Wednesday, September 10, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the gallery. The reception and art exhibit is free of charge and open to the public.

"Bob Williams has devoted thousands of hours to the mastery of the craft of pastel portraiture," states LMC art instructor and exhibit organizer Ken Schaber. "He is one of the most accomplished portrait artists in the area, and his work serves as an inspiration for all of us who aspire to recreate studies of our fellow man and woman."

Williams, a recently retired electronic engineer from Whirlpool Corporation, enjoys drawing and painting a variety of subject matter in colored pencil, watercolor, pen and ink but devotes much of his efforts to painting portraits in pastels and oil. He has a studio at The Box Factory for the Arts in St. Joseph.

"My art does not have any deep seated philosophical meaning which must be explained to and understood by the viewer," states Williams. "My motivation for painting and drawing is more for the love of the process of doing it than for a desire to say something. I do, however, enjoy the challenge of trying to convey the pain or pleasure I feel as I observe the world around me to the viewer of my work. I particularly enjoy portraying the visual beauty I see in my subjects which may not be apparent to the casual observer."

Williams studied portraiture with George Palmer of Buffalo, New York, and has taken workshops and classes from Larry Blovitts, Phylis Rhoads, Joseph Fettingis, and Robert Hoffman.

The exhibit will be on display through October 10. Gallery hours will be Mondays through Thursdays, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Fridays, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, please contact Ken Schaber at (269) 927-8100, ext. 5180.