Bill Chambers: Water Reflections

A One-Man Exhibition  |  April 3 – 29, 2021

“These paintings depict water reflections of objects in and around the San Joaquin Delta by boat during late summer and early fall. The water at this time is calm and placid and the vegetation is rich in color. The best way to get around in The Delta is by boat due to very few roads in and around the area. During several expeditions with a hired guide, I discovered many boats that have seen better years, left derelict and unattended. The tug boats in the paintings, however, are in working class conditions and are waiting on their next assignments stationed in port locations.” – Bill Chambers, February 2021

In The Studio

Artist Statement

I attended Sacramento City College and the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, where I received my BFA in graphic arts. I worked briefly for Aerojet as a commercial artist before being drafted into the Army and going to Vietnam in 1965. Upon my return, I attended the University of California, Davis where I earned my MA in Fine Art. I have been a working artist and an art teacher, where I have taught at both the high school and community college level, and at the California Youth Authority in Stockton, California, from which I retired in 2003.

Since 2003, my art has evolved around West Sacramento with a series of drawings, oil paintings, and watercolors of the Port of Sacramento. My more recent work has been bridges on the Sacramento and American River.

I have been a watercolorist for a number of years, and my work-which has always reflected my fascination with the complex interplay of colors and patterns—can be found in public and private collections throughout the region. I have turned my attention to painting the industrial landscapes of the Sacramento Valley, attracted by the atmospheric effects created by the light of a morning or afternoon sun on the scenes that I find.