Biography: Thomas M. Williams MFA

Tom Williams has been involved in lighting as a student, technician, designer and teacher for 40 years. He holds a Master of Fine Arts in Theatrical Design and Technology from the University of Georgia and designed and taught theatrical lighting in leading liberal arts colleges in Georgia, Illinois and Vermont for 22 years. As a professional educator, he designed the stage lighting for more than 100 productions.

In the fall of 1997, Williams attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Lighting Research Center’s first Landscape Lighting Institute. Through this intense exploration of outdoor lighting, Williams discovered his long developed skills as a Theatrical Lighting Designer were transferable into a new and deeply challenging field - Landscape Lighting Design. Janet Lennox Moyer, author of The Landscape Lighting Book, prime mover behind the Landscape Lighting Institute and Williams’ new mentor, urged him to consider a career shift.

In 1998, he left education and, with Ms Moyer’s support and strong recommendation, accepted a full-time design position as Associate Designer with the Southampton, NY based design and install firm, Greg Yale Landscape Illumination. While with GYLI, Williams’ design opportunities included designs in The Hamptons, New England and Palm Beach. In addition, he designed outdoor lighting for the Napa Valley winery, Dominus Estate. “Completed in 1997, the Dominus winery was designed by the Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron. Best known for the Tate Modern in London, their first project in the United States was Dominus. In 2001, Jaques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron were awarded the Pritzker Prize, the highest honor in architecture.” Williams felt particularly honored to work closely with Christian & Cherise Moueix to achieve the amazing difficult “simple lighting” they desired.

Since establishing his own practice in upstate New York in 2002, Tom has designed and supervised the installation of garden lighting for fine residences in the Westchester County and Lake George areas of New York. He has also been very active in Greenwich CT, the Berkshires, Eastern Pennsylvania and South Florida.

Williams is a member of the Association of Outdoor Lighting Professionals (AOLP) (formerly LVLIA) and subscribes to their Code Of Ethics. The AOLP awarded him the Certified Low-Voltage Lighting Technician (CLVLT #0424) in 2004, and the Certified Outdoor Lighting Designer (COLD #1105, Honorary) in 2011. He is also a member of the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) and is proud to support the IDA’s efforts “to preserve and protect the nighttime environment and our heritage of dark skies” through quality outdoor lighting.

In 2009, he shifted the base of his practice to the Pacific Northwest to support his wife’s decision to accept a career-capping position in Portland, OR.