Brian Williams is an American contemporary painter and printmaker working in Japan. Born in Lima, raised both in Peru and in Chile, Brian Williams decided to pursue a career in art at age 16. Moving to California, he finished high school and spent four years studying at the University of California at Santa Barbara. In 1972, he bought a one-way ticket to Japan and made his permanent home there. Williams’ primary medium is watercolor and he tends to paint on paint location. Since 2007, he has added a bucket truck to his method, allowing him to raise himself into the air to capture his desired perspective. He also works in oil paint, as well as lithography and etching.

In 2007, Williams invented what he terms ‘parabolic painting,’ composed of panel paintings that have been curved to reflect the eye’s movement across the scene. This innovation has been featured on NHK, as well as other television programs and print media. Williams has held over one hundred exhibitions in Japan, including two exhibitions sponsored by the Asahi Newspapers (both 1996), and museum exhibitions in 2006 and 2007. His works can be found in collections such as the Los Angeles County Art Museum and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Today, Williams lives in a 200-year-old farmhouse outside of Kyoto, travels frequently, and lectures on environmental preservation.