Hugh T. Williams
Artist

Hugh Thomas Williams
(B. 1956, Lincoln, Nebraska)

Hugh T. Williams did not begin his invasion into the world of painting until the ripe old age of 43.

A consummate military brat, Hugh was transplanted from the frozen mid western plains as an only child, eventually landing with his parents on to the balmy, palm-lined streets of Tampa, Florida. It was on these South Tampa streets where the compulsion to collect & create began at a young age, manifesting itself early on in Hugh's uncanny knack for finding "buried treasure" in the discards of the neighborhood garbage cans & alleys.

Hugh also found himself increasingly drawn into the world of collecting record albums & comics; two influences which would have a profound affect on his later work as a painter. It was also about this time when the call of rock music hit Hugh full-throttle and a life long passion for playing & listening began to take over.

After finishing high school, we fast-forward a few years to find Mr. Williams manning the helm as the drummer in the VooDoo Idols, a Tampa based, drug & alcohol fueled punk outfit whose early vinyl releases are still sought after by many record collectors of the genre. It was during his tenure on the punk rock chitlin circuit where Mr. Williams began his twenty- plus year love affair with drinking, eventually going cold-turkey & ditching the bottle for good in the early 90's - at the end of a decade-long stint as the sole care-taker of his ailing father, who would require 24 hour a day attention due to various medical ailments.

After his fathers passing, Mr. Williams took on various odd jobs and began to rebuild a life for himself. Little did he know his life would be altered irrevocably just a few months later by a near-fatal car accident which confined Hugh to a wheelchair for the better part of a year. It was at this time while confined to his home that Mr. Williams dove inward and emerged reborn as a folk painter of musical icons; initially out of the sheer frustration & boredom of his convalescence. Mr. Williams' encyclopedic knowledge of music and popular culture are combined with a razor-sharp wit and well-developed eye for color. His work is most often two-dimensional & nearly flat in perspective, often mimicking in style the comic books, record covers & advertisements culled from of his youth. His work now resides in private collections in both the United States and Europe and is much sought after by professional musicians, music industry insiders and private art collectors.
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