Photo by Philip Gould
Dennis Paul Williams, "Patron of Silence"
Dennis Paul Williams navigates life as a perpetual journey towards perfection, towards self-realization—a journey he articulates most clearly in his art. His vivid, expressionist, multi-media paintings are distinguished by an intense spirituality; they are meditations on identity and experience, on presence and connection.
“I try to recreate outward patterns,” he says, describing his recent body of work, currently on display in his solo exhibition, The Divine of Nine, at the Teche Center for the Arts in Breaux Bridge. “The colors I use exist on their own, they can continue to breathe on their own. The colors that I use represent certain aspects of my life, express the emotional range. And I just take small steps forward, realizing that the paths are already set. All I’m trying to do is transcribe what is already there.”
Photo by Philip Gould
Dennis Paul Williams, "Chordal Psalm Number One"
It’s an approach that Williams brings to his art, to his work as a musician, and to his life—the idea that our stories are already written, and if we pay attention, and follow them consistently, some day we may reach spiritual perfection. “It’s easy to start all over,” he says. “In my heart I’m trying to stay on this journey, to find clarity in what I’m doing in my work. It’s easy to start over with who we are and what we’re doing, but being consistent is where you move.”
The works in The Divine of Nine reflect this paradoxical combination of improvisation and narrative, colors melding and bursting delicately across the page, overlaid with stark, sketched figures and faces—Williams’ subjects appear to move, to touch, to hold each other, to connect and join. And in some of his paintings—Williams applies an additional ethereal quality—a light, sparkling mirage of swirls and silhouettes depicting objects of nature—birds, fruits, flowers, frogs, and often spirit-like figures observing the sketched faces beside them.
Photo by Philip Gould
Dennis Paul Williams, "Chordal Psalm Number Three"
Growing up in the Creole heartland of South Louisiana in Saint Martinville, Williams found art as a mechanism for exploring meaning and purpose at a very young age. After losing his father at the age of ten, he created his first work of art on his dad’s pillowcase—a self-portrait.
Hungry for more, he approached his local printing shop and asked for a job—“Mom always taught us to work for what we wanted.” He’d take scrap papers from the printer and build sketch-pads from them. Later, he picked up a second job at the local office supply store, where he got access to watercolor sets and art supplies as well.
When he was older, he continued to edge his way towards his perceived destiny by securing a job at an art gallery in Lafayette—“just to be around the art.”
Photo by Philip Gould
Dennis Paul Williams, "Untitled" During the exhibition of "The Divine of Nine, visitors are invited to help choose a name for this painting, currently referred to as "Untitled." The name will be announced later this summer.
“I was always a seeker, looking to meet people who did what I wanted to do,” he says. “I just created an atmosphere for myself.”
Since then Williams has continued on his journey of artistic discovery and interpretation, working in his studio for hours on end, every day. He’s kept journals of his spiritual and artistic journey, documented with reflections and sketches of over forty years. Some are on display at the TCA, accompanying The Divine of Nine.
Williams has made an international name for himself as an artist, a musician, and a trusted traiteur. His work has been exhibited in galleries in New Orleans and London, as well as museums and private collections throughout the United States and beyond. He tours the world as a guitarist for his brother’s band, Nathan and the Zydeco Cha Chas, and has served several terms on the St. Martinville City Council. In 2013, he published Soul Exchange: The Paintings of Dennis Paul Williams with UL Press. And now, he presents his first gallery exhibition in his beloved home parish.
Photo by Philip Gould
Dennis Paul Williams, "Chordal Song"
When visitors view Williams’ nine paintings displayed in the Teche Center for the Arts’ theater gallery, he says he wants them to come without any preconceived idea of what they’ll understand from them. “I don’t want to dictate how people feel … I want them to see themselves in what I’m doing,” he said. “The only way to see yourself is to not bring a set of experiences with you. Go there to experience.”
Experience, Williams says, is where he draws much of his art. “The experiences you go through are part of your art,” he says. “At all times, it's a process of creating all the time by adjusting to how you see and how you hear what you are experiencing in that moment.”
“The only evolution we really have is our art. My work is my salvation; it's a part of myself. Helps me to pay attention to what I am growing.”
The Divine of Nine will be on display at the Teche Center for the Arts throughout the months of July and August 2019.
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