Michael Williams makes paintings that recreate parts of our modern lives using analogue and digital processes. Williams’ paintings, whether on canvas or on a computer, are inspired by pop culture iconography and art history. Despite this, he allows for unexpected occurrences to occur while they are being produced. As a result, they exude an occasionally sarcastic, occasionally funny tension that is always visually appealing.
By pushing himself to tackle a continually shifting set of formal obstacles, he produces graphics that symbolise the contradiction and complexity of current existence. Some of the most recent paintings were created with oil paint, collage, and airbrushes. Others were developed on a computer with Photoshop and a digital drawing pad before being inkjet printed on canvas. In the development of his works, Williams meticulously blends offhand gesture with exacting compositional rigour, creating decisions that leave his paintings purposely ambiguous.