Faculty News
Bio
Dr. Douglas A. Williams is a past Fulbright scholar in Africa and National Park Service – DSC landscape architect. He studied abroad in the Caribbean and Europe, while completing his B.S. in horticulture at the University of Illinois (UIUC). In addition, he studied abroad in Japan, before finishing his M.L.A. at Cornell University. He earned a Ph.D. in landscape architecture from UIUC, where he was also a postdoctoral research associate in the College of Applied Health Sciences. Recently, Williams joined the distinguished list of Harvard University, Dumbarton Oak research awardees and the Black Metropolis Research Consortium Fellow. His art work has been shown across the country, from the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art to the Black Creativity show at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, the longest continuously running juried exhibit of African American Art at a large mainstream venue in the US.
A nationally awarded FFA graduate from the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences, who has also worked at all levels of government, private practice, and taught at HBCUs, this curious and creative consultant now primarily focuses on building capacity with non-profit organizations implementing Quality of Life Plans in Chicago's South and West Sides, having served with AmeriCorps VISTA and selected for a City of Chicago's Invest South/West design team. Through ethnography, ‘involved’ participant observation, grounded theory and extensive historical reflection, Williams seeks to contextualize those often forgotten, seldom mentioned and frequently misinterpreted within mainstream narratives. His research, teaching and service-based practice is rooted in community engaged history and culture, which furthers impactful policies, supporting designed places with equity.
The member of The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States has been engaged in over 20 motion picture and TV productions, from The Trial of the Chicago Seven to most recently as a core member of season 7 of NBC's Chicago Med. Dr. Doug has been a PBS - MidAmerican Gardener Show panelist for nearly two decades and has planted close to a thousand trees in Illinois.
Disclaimer: All work represents the views of the INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS & AUTHORS who created them, and are not those of the school or museum of the Art Institute.
