Description
Mary Beresford Williams (21 February 1931 – 2021) was a British artist whose career encompassed painting, printmaking, and photography.
She was born in London and educated at Watford Grammar School for Girls between 1939 and 1949, where she obtained A levels in Art, French, and Geography. In 1949, she gained a place at the University of Reading, graduating in 1954 with a First Class BA (Honours) degree in Fine Art, specialising in Drawing and Painting.
Williams was a member of the Newlyn Society of Artists (NSA) from at least 1978, according to the Society’s records. Her work featured in several publications, including illustrations for Hurrah for Hazeldown (1983) and a limited-edition volume documenting her photographic work for Television South West (TSW) produced circa 1980. During research for the Hardie-edited publication Artists in Newlyn and West Cornwall (2009), she generously donated her personal archive of exhibition catalogues, press cuttings, and launch invitations to the West Cornwall Arts Archive (WCAA).
She exhibited widely throughout her career. Notable exhibitions included a solo exhibition at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter (1974); participation in Top Ten (1978); the South West Arts Major Award in Fine Art; exhibitions at Newlyn Art Gallery, including Pont-Aven (1977); mixed exhibitions; and Art Share (1988). Williams also exhibited extensively in France during the 1970s and 1980s with the Newlyn Society of Artists.
In addition to her artistic practice, Williams travelled extensively by yacht, spending prolonged periods in the Bahamas and South America – experiences that informed her visual sensibility and artistic approach.
Alongside painting, Williams worked extensively in photography and printmaking. She incorporated photography into her creative process for producing digital prints in small editions. Each print was individually produced, requiring her artistic judgement at every stage, and was therefore unique. Her screen prints, which she refined and produced over more than two decades, were characterised by their near-photographic transparency and distinctive visual quality. Issued in small, limited editions, these works are representative of her singular artistic style.
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