Elizabeth Williams (artist)
Elizabeth Williams is a New York City-based illustrator, courtroom artist and author.[1] She has covered many high-profile court cases such as those of John DeLorean, Martha Stewart, John Gotti, Michael Milken, Bernard Madoff, Dominique Strauss-Khan, Michael Cohen, and the Times Square Bomber.[2][3][4] Williams is the author with true crime writer Sue Russell of The Illustrated Courtroom: 50 Years of Court Art, a history of American courtroom sketch artistry published by CUNY Journalism Press in 2014.[5][6]
Elizabeth Williams | |
|---|---|
Courtroom artist Elizabeth Williams sketching Dominique Strauss-Kahn at his New York court hearing on July 1, 2011 | |
| Education | Washington University in St. Louis Parsons The New School for Design Syracuse University Otis Art Institute |
| Alma mater | Parsons The New School for Design |
| Occupation(s) | Illustrator Author |
| Known for | Courtroom artist |
Career edit
Williams’ career began in Hollywood, California, where she was a fashion illustrator for designers such as Michael Travis and in the atelier of Bob Mackie.[1][7] Following the suggestion of a teacher she decided to pursue the possible career as a court artist. While working as a fashion illustrator she went to an art show in San Diego, California, where she saw the courtroom art of well-known sketch artist Bill Robles.[1][8] After a meeting with Robles, she began to work as a courtroom artist.[7] The first court case she covered was the San Bernardino, California hearing of a child molester in 1980.[2][9]
After Williams met Robles at a trial in Los Angeles, California, that they were both covering and he began to mentor her.[10] The first high-profile trial she covered was the 1984 drug trafficking trial of John DeLorean for Los Angeles-based channel KABC-TV.[2] Later that year Williams returned to her native New York and began working as a courtroom artist in New York City.[10] While in New York City, Williams gained a reputation for reporting on white-collar crime.[1] She covered the trials inside traders Ivan Boesky, Michael Milken, Raj Rajaratnam, and Martha Stewart.[1] Williams also reported on the trials of financial figures such as Bernard Madoff, Bernard Ebbers, and Dominique Strauss-Khan.[3][11] Non-financial trials reported on by Williams include those of John Gotti, Times Square Bomber, terrorist Abu Anas al Libi, and Russian spy Anna Chapman.[2][5]
In 2012, 61 of Williams’ sketches depicting the Sean Bell trial were acquired by the Lloyd Sealy Library at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.[12]
Along with crime writer Sue Russell, Williams authored The Illustrated Courtroom: 50 Years of Court Art, which was published in 2014 by CUNY Journalism Press. The book is a retrospective of American courtroom sketch art of high-profile trials produced from 1964 to 2014 and contains work from artists Howard Brodie, Aggie Kenny, Bill Robles, Richard Tomlinson, and Williams.[5]
Education and style edit
Williams studied art at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis, the Parsons The New School for Design, Syracuse University and the Otis Art Institute.[10] Much of her artwork is created with brush pens, colored pencils, oil pastel and oil paint sticks.[2]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e Alexandra Stevenson (April 14, 2014). "Capturing on Canvas the Downfall of Wall Street's Criminals". The New York Times. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Daniel Fitzsimmons (November 6, 2013). "Reporting By Drawing". New York Press. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
- ^ a b John W. Miller (December 13, 2011). "Live Blog: Sandusky Waives Right to Hearing". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
- ^ Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2018-12-09. Retrieved 2018-12-08.
- ^ a b c Justin Jones. "O.J., Martha, Jagger, and Manson: Capturing Celebrities in the Dock". The Daily Beast. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
- ^ Michael D. Goldhaber (June 12, 2014). "Legal Artistry: Courthouse Drama Drawn in Real Time". American Lawyer. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
- ^ a b Irene Plagianos (April 21, 2014). . DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
- ^ Lynn Neary (June 22, 2014). "'The Illustrated Courtroom' Finds Art In Real-Life Legal Drama". National Public Radio. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
- ^ Chester Jesus Soria (April 29, 2014). . Metro New York. Archived from the original on July 29, 2014. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
- ^ a b c Julie Shapiro (July 3–9, 2009). "Artist captures the sketchiest character of all: Bernie Madoff". Downtown Express. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
- ^ Sarah Van Arsdale. "Elizabeth Williams: The Eye of a Sketch Artist" (PDF). New York Institute of Photography. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
- ^ (PDF). Spring 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 28, 2014. Retrieved July 28, 2014.