IN MEMORY
of
MR. DOUG WILLIAMS
Senior English Teacher & Drama Club Sponsor
Ribault High School
1966 - 1967
Doug Williams, a well-known Nashville interior designer and artist, died Saturday, July 7, 2001, at Vanderbilt University Medical Center of complications from heart disease. He was 68.
Mr. Williams was a noted artist who showed his work locally and in Atlanta, Dallas, New York and London. As an interior designer, he transformed the interiors of many buildings, among them the BMI building in Nashville, historical landmarks on Music Row, and BMI's offices in New York, Los Angeles and London. He also produced and designed BMI's major annual events: the Pop, Country, Latin, Film & Television, and London awards dinners.
The son of the late Baumann and Irene Schmitt Williams, Mr. Williams was a descendant of Ernest Schmitt, a founding member of the First Lutheran Church of Nashville, where Mr. Williams was also a member.
Mr. Williams was a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University. He earned graduate degrees in music from Northwestern University and in English from UCLA. He later taught high school music and English in Hawaii, Texas and Florida. In the early 1960s, he toured internationally as a solo classical marimba player.
Mr. Williams is survived by his sister, Frances Williams Preston, President & CEO of BMI, and three nephews, including David Preston, Director of Writer/Publisher Relations, BMI Nashville.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Frances Williams Preston Laboratories at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, 2100 Pierce Avenue, Suite 301, Nashville, TN 37212.
Dear Fellow Classmates,
As many of you will recall, last summer we had a question on Go Ask Alice submitted by Sonny Cole regarding the old dead tree that showed up in Mr. Williams’ classroom. For those who may not remember Doug Williams, he taught many of us senior English and was the Drama Club Sponsor Extraordinaire. Some of you responded with what you could remember about that old dead tree and Mr. Williams. It was fascinating to see how many people’s lives he touched in his short time with us our senior year at Ribault.
As a surprise for our 60th Birthday Party, Judy and I were on a hunt to see if we could locate Mr. Williams and invite him to join us. Sadly, Judy found his death notice on the internet which is posted below.
Forever Classmates ~ Alice Bartlett Mabry
Mr. Williams and Ann Smith Nowlin
Senior Skip Day
May 29, 1967
In January, 2008, the Elder Art Gallery in Charlotte, North Carolina, held a showing of Mr. Williams Art:
Elder Gallery
presents
The Art of Doug Williams
The paintings in Elder Gallery’s January exhibition are from the artist’s personal collection and were discovered in his Nashville studio after his death in 2001. Doug Williams was from a prominent Nashville family who encouraged his artistic interests. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in literature and classical music, which led to teaching opportunities in Hawaii, Texas and Florida. He became a classical marimba player, performing with symphony orchestras from Mexico City to Europe. His musical achievements as a performer were world class. He followed his successful concert career with various projects requiring his talents as an impresario.
During the 1970s Williams returned to Nashville as an entrepreneur and opened several art galleries and a framing business. He dedicated nearly twenty years to renovating some of the last remaining Victorian houses in Nashville. He became a presenter of art and artists, and often a patron.
During 1992 Williams was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness and quickly became aware that time was not on his side. Encouraged by his sister, Frances Williams Preston, he began painting day and night in a frenzy of activity. Paintings became his legacy of choice. Williams was a person of vision and he became a visionary painter. Just as he was a deep reader and a consummate musician, he painted the mysteries of life and death in his own style. He took seriously the truths he had come to understand, and his paintings were a new path to showing those truths to others.
The subject matter of his paintings is complex. Each was rendered with an emotional, naïve quality. Approximately thirty paintings comprise the exhibition which is entitled “Awakening to Beauty.” The exhibition runs through January 30, 2008.
Scroll down to view partial list of painting in exhibition.
"Embraced"
Oil on Paper
35" x 38"
"Spirits Break Loose"
Mixed Media on Paper
25" x 32"
"The Birth"
Mixed Media on Paper
23" x 30"
"Carnival"
Mixed Media on Board
46" x 36"
"Two Figures, Table, Vase"
Watercolor
14" x 18"
"Awakening to Beauty 1"
Oil on Canvas
68" x 44"
Mr. Williams' infamous classroom tree
This tree was the creation of Mr. Williams and his students. Students were allowed to hang objects which represented them, our class and our country in 1967. This tree represented the creativity of one of the Class's much-loved teachers. Mr. Williams was unlike any teacher at Ribault. He broke the mold for "normal", which is why he was probably so well loved. Thanks for the memories, Mr. Williams.
Thank you Linda Sheffield Shepherd for keeping your copy of the "Alumni Newsletter" in which this photo appeared.
Class of '67
Tribute to Mr. Williams
