Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Visionary art and the metaphysical

Evernus Williams
Searcy, Arizona, United States

 

Artist’s note: These works stem from various studies of anatomical structures and their relationship to nature and technology. When I first endeavored to learn about the human form in 2002, I studied anatomical dissections directly at a local college’s lab while also taking life drawing classes. The dissections were stomach churning but I was able to glean some insight into the human form from my sketches.

I attempted to understand the structures behind the human body. As a result, I completed an anatomical map composed of 150 images from various illustration manuals and real life studies. I studied the works of Gray’s Anatomy as well as several medical illustration books and journals to produce initial images. It was years later, after completing Death Byte and Archaeopteryx Incross, that I discovered visionary art and began composing Drawing a Rose from the Water and Reading.

I have a foundation in Realism, that is to say that all of my initial anatomical studies were done based on the realistic depictions of anatomy from nature. Later on I combined the careful study of the human form with an approach that illuminated a person’s connection to nature and to knowledge and insight. I create swirls around the forms to emphasize the repetition of color and movement in nature. I outline my forms with tones of silver, gold, and blue to emphasize light sources around the body.

 

Skull, vertebrae, clavicle, and scapula surrounded by silver, gray, white, and some gold geometric designs. The skull contains a white and gray swirl near the temple area, and gray and white twisting lines resembling DNA with a straight line between them serve as a vertical border on the right side of the artwork.

Death Byte
29 x 35 in, silver pen and gouache on paperboard

 

Hand with veins detailed holding a rose over a background of blue swirls. In some of the swirls are red shapes resembling rose petals. The artist's signature is in the bottom right.

Drawing a rose from water
8 x 10 in, watercolor & gouache on paper

 

Anatomical side view (skeleton, blood vessels, brain) of person looking down at a book. A white line extends from the eyes and goes down to the book, while other white lines and red curls swirl around the person's head, depicting the wonders of thought and reading. The artist's signature is in the bottom left corner.

Reading
16 x 23 in, acrylic, gouache, and watercolor on paper

 


 

EVERNUS WILLIAMS, fine artist, started his career in 2000. He has studied abroad in Florence, Italy through Harding University and gained insight into anatomy and physiology through the Dissections Lab at Cabrillo College. His paintings and drawings have been featured at international exhibitions and cultural centers, including in Scandicci, Italy and at The New Perspective Gallery in Winlaw, B.C. Canada.  His work has also been shown at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California, The 418 Project in Santa Cruz, California, and the Mount Madonna Center for the Creative Arts in Watsonville, California. Additional works can be accessed at www.evernuswilliams.com.

 

Spring 2016  |  Sections  |  Gallery

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