ABOUT WILLIAM SNYDER III

artist 
​statement

I am an artist working across drawing, painting, sculpture, and large-scale public murals. My practice is rooted in the human experience—valuing life, humor, and joy alongside attention, labor, and contribution. I’m interested in how making something carefully, visibly, and honestly can elevate everyday experience and remind us of our shared humanity.

I’ve spent years working at multiple scales, from intimate drawings to murals embedded in public space. Formally, my work is driven by bold line, deliberate composition, and color relationships that generate movement and feeling. I’m influenced by the belief—central to Kandinsky’s philosophy—that visual language can translate inner experience: that a work can be emotionally moving through rhythm, contrast, and the tension between structure and play.
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Public work has become an essential part of my practice because it allows art to function as a shared experience rather than a private object. I value clarity, strong visual impact, and work that meets people where they are.

education

​Masters of Fine Arts, 2006        
The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania

Bachelor of Integrative Arts, 2003    
​The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania

select public art & exhibitions

• 800,000 ACKNOWLEDGE. REMEMBER. RENEW., United Nations Headquarters, New York, NY
  
• 800,000 ACKNOWLEDGE. REMEMBER. RENEW., Old Bowery Station, New York, NY
  
• Rwanda Beautiful, Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology, West Chester University, West Chester, PA
  
• Fayetteville Graduate, Large-Scale Mural Installation, Fayetteville, AR
  
• Save 144, Public Installation, State College, PA
  
• #BigVespa, Public Installations, New York, NY; Sioux Falls, SD; Memphis, TN; State College, PA
  
• Walking Sculpture Tour, Mankato, MN
  
• Stix & Stones, Zoller Gallery, Penn State University, University Park, PA
  
• Behold the Blossom, Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA
  
• Gesturing into Consciousness, Zoller Gallery, Penn State University, University Park, PA
  

select grants & awards

• Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Creative Fellowship
  
• Advancing the Arts Grant, Arts Council of the Valley (VA)
  
• “BADASS Award for Enrichment”, Real Industry (JMU X-Labs)
  
• Excellence in Sculpture Award, Behold the Blossom, Wayne Art Center
  
• Emerging Artist Award, The Hybrid Book, University of the Arts
  
• “Focus on Appearance” Award, Wild Geese Mural, State College Borough
  
• Second Place, Other Materials, Walking Sculpture Tour, Mankato, MN