Emeritus Professor David Williams
Adjunct Professor

T: ( 02 ) 6125 1460
E: david.williams@anu.edu.au

Short biography:

Professor Williams is currently Adjunct Professor with the ANU Research School of Humanities (RSH). Prior to this, he was Director ANU, School of Art Oct 1985 - June 2006; Director of the Australia Council. Crafts Board 1978-85 and a Lecturer at Melbourne State College 1973-78. These appointments followed a career in art/craft teaching in Victorian schools, supply teaching in London, and art/craft advisor to the Victorian Art Branch and the Australia Council. His qualifications are TPTC (Bendigo Teachers College) TACTC (Melbourne Teachers College); Dip. Art (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology); Fellow (RMIT) and M.Ed (La Trobe University.

In 1996-97 he was Project Director for an enquiry into Research in the Creative Arts, a project funded by DEETYA Evaluations and Investigations Program. In 2006-7, he was consultant to the national Council for Humanities.

From 1986 - 2006 Professor Williams was a member of the Executive Committee Australian Council of University Art and Design Schools ACUADS, and Chair 1994, 1997, 2003-04.

Research Interests:

Professor Williams' research interests focus on contemporary Australian and Asian Art. Since his work with the APT during the 1990s,in September 2006, he curated Japanese Links, an exhibition of School of Art staff who have participated in the ANU/ Kyoto Seika University exchange program, and in May 2007, was co-curator of the Thresholds of Tolerance exhibition at the School of Art Gallery arranged to coincide with the RSH Art and Human Rights and the art and re-enactment workshops. As part of the follow-up conference and visiting artists' activities, he was co-curator of the exhibition Recovering Lives organized in August 2008.

Current Research Projects:

Currently, he is visual arts consultant to an ARC funded linkage project involving the Australian Balle Company, The University of Adelaide and the National Library of Australia looking at the culture impact of the Ballet Russes 1930s Australian tours. As part of the project and linked to an internatione conference, he developed exhibitions at the Adelaide Festival Centre and the Art Gallery of Soutl Australia for display in May- June 2008. This year he is coordinating essays by visual arts writers for (related publication due late in 2009.