C. Warner Williams - The Artist

April 23, 1903 - Aug. 3, 1982 

Exhibition of ssculpture by C. Warner Williams 1930-

Plaques Honoring Knute Roche

C. Warner Williams - Commemorative Plaques Woodcraft

Warner Williams, CMA Artist, Retiring

Williams: Sculpting is a Way of Life Sculptor's Career Fun, Profitable

Warner Williams & Telescopes

"Sculptor's America" series.- Hamilton Mint

C. Warner Williams - The Artist Sculptures & Medallions

Culver’s Renaissance Man

---

Portrait of the artist as a young man: Warner Williams in 1930...

...and at age 74.

Perhaps more than any other individual, Warner Williams is remembered locally as Culver's "star" artist, earning a national reputation besides his local one.

He was a fixture in Culver, famous for his art and other accomplishments -- including a geodesic dome that he and his wife, Jean, built in their backyard at 309 White Street -- and visible long after retirement age bicycling around town, before his death on September 3, 1982.

Williams was born April 23, 1903 in Henderson, KY, a graduate of Berea College, also earning degrees at the Art Institute in Chicago and John Herron Art School in Indianapolis.

He and taught and lectured before 1940, when he came to Culver Academy as artist-in-residence, marrying Jean (formerly Jean Aber, born 1916 in Racine, Wisconsin) in 1948 and retiring from the Academy in 1969.

Jean has been an art teacher in Ohio, having graduated from Oberlin College, and had married Robert Kernohan in 1939 and moving to Culver (she later, of course, was divorced from Kernohan).

Warner Williams' art is a familiar sight to many Culver residents, most prominently displayed via many of his sculptures at the Culver Public Library.

He was probably most famous outside of Culver, however, for his design of medallions and coin medals. He designed the Indianapolis Speedway's 50th Anniversary medallion as well as Indiana's Sesquicentennial medallion.

Working out of his geodesic dome, he also produced the series of animal sculptures on display at the library (see images), and bas-relief portraits of famous persons and several satirical-political medallions and limericks.

He also made the design mold for thr plaque for Don Mikesell which hangs of thr front door panel at the Culver-Union Township Fire Department at 504 Lakeshore Dr.

Williams was an amateur astronomer and in addition to building the geodesic dome and several telescopes, also ground his own lenses. He became something of a local celebrity as a result, and many people from all walks of life received tours of his dome and its contents.

His wife Jean served for several years as town board president and was also an artist in her own right, working as a calligrapher and designing a billboard for the town of Culver, among other accomplishments.

His artistic life can be found accounted for in various newspaper articles:

---

First American citizen to be made a saint by the Catholic church was Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini. This is a bas-relief portrait completed by Culver Military Academy sculptor C. Warner Williams for a bronze plaque to be placed in the mausoleum in the Queen of Heaven mausoleum at Hillside, Ill.

---

October 5, 1949 - Warner Williams, Culver artist, was the subject of an interesting personality story in a recent issue of The Louisville, Ky.,Courier Journal Sunday magazine. Titled "Master of Arts," the illustrated article tells of theartist and of his varied educational and vocational interests.

---

September 29, 1965 - Culver Military Acasemy artist-in-Residence Warner Williams has been informed that he has won the competition and the $1,000 prize for designing the Indiana Sesquicentennial medallion.

---

THE CULVER GOLDEN AGERS
by Adrianna Hellstrom
Thursday February 22, 1979
Culver Citizen

...

Guests were Mr. and Mrs. Warner Williams. It was also their anniversary so Happy Anniversary was sung to them ...

Warner Williams well known Culver artists gave the program on limerics. He described how to write a limeric They must consist of 5 lines three of which rhyme with the theme word, the first two and the last. The middle lines just rhyme

Mr. Williams read quite a few limerics that he had written an example.
Golden Agers

The term old age is just a fable.
A mean and disrespectful label.
You know they are young, in that Culver bunch.
The way they rush to their Wedensday lunch
And scramble to get to the table.

---

C. Warner Williams born April 23, 1903 Henderson, KY, died Aug. 3, 1982

Warner married 1st ---

Carroll (son) Williams died 2005

Married 2nd Feb. 14, 1948 Jean Aber, born April 23, 1916 Racine, Wisconsin died Nov. 30, 2006 Fairport, N.Y. Earle Aber and Alvina Kratochvil She married 1st 1939 Robert Kernohan, divorced; married 3rd Dec. 4, 1993, she married Dale A. Murphy, Sr.

David R. Williams married Inger ---
Earle R. Williams married Kathleen ---
Sylvia J. Williams