HSG Heather Williams interview

In the Studio we have artists Heather Williams. She shares her motivations and inspirations with us and she talks about her installation sculpture Witness.
Heather Williams was born in St. Croix US Virgin Islands and raised in Brooklyn , NY. She was always interested in becoming an artist but her parents who were first generation from Trinidad and Grenada encouraged her to find a job. She followed their advice and studied finance in undergrad but ultimately changed careers to become an Art Therapist. She worked with the domestic violence population for over ten years providing group and individual therapy. Later, she became a mother and a certified Montessori Primary teacher. After several years of teaching she resigned and returned to grad school, this time to fulfill her dream of focusing on her art.
Heather earned a Masters in Fine Art from the School of Visual Arts in 2020 at the height of the pandemic. She has been awarded the Paula Rhodes memorial award for exceptional achievement in MFA Art Practice. Her short film, Safe Passage was awarded honorable mention at the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago. She has also been awarded residencies at Eileen S. Kaminsky Family Foundation (ESKFF) at Mana Contemporary, ArtCrawl Harlem at Governors Island, NY and a Sustainable Arts Fellowship at Gallery Aferro, NJ. She currently works out of her studio in Newark, NJ. She has exhibited in many group exhibitions including Rise at Heath Gallery in NY, and solo shows Damage and Repair at Akwaaba Gallery in Newark, NJ and Protective Spirits at The Bridge Art Gallery, NJ. Her sculptures and abstract paintings are in many collections which include The Colored Girls Museum, PA and work commissioned by The Newark Museum.