Simon Williams

Simon Williams teaches our three-day Exploring Abstraction course.

Simon lives and works in Cornwall from the prestigious Porthmeor studios in St Ives. His unique approach to painting is one of experimentation and discovery. He takes inspiration from many sources, most notably comic books, posters, and urban graffiti. This helps inform his aesthetic choices and approach, where he skilfully combines different materials and techniques to create turbulent, energy-filled paintings that act as totemic reflections of the modern world.

Williams is not only a painter but also a highly skilled maker, with an extensive knowledge of materials and their manipulation gained over years of working as an Animatronic Designer in the film industry. As a result, he has travelled the world and worked with many high-profile companies at the cutting edge of stylistic technological developments, from Warner Brothers to Jim Henson’s, Creature Shop, and has created creatures/effects on numerous films, from Harry Potter to Star Wars.

He has exhibited widely, from curating 'After Illusion' bringing together 6 prominent abstract painters of the South West, to exhibiting in the UK's most prestigious 'John Moore's Painting Prize' at Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, along with solo exhibitions in Bristol and London.

Williams has also taught and lectured at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Royal College of Art and Plymouth College of Art.