About Russ

Russ Wills is a fine art photographer, educator and musician. Wills has been creating fine art photography for more than ten years and has shown his work in galleries and events in New York and New Jersey. Wills' photography is heavily influenced by Abstract Expressionism and uses the formal elements of his abstraction to suggest hope, restoration, and renewal. While the work can be enjoyed at a purely sublime level, the deeper spiritual meanings of the work also offer mental and spiritual stimulation.

Russ Wills completed his Master of Fine Arts degree at Academy of Art University in the fall of 2015. Russ received his Bachelor of Fine Art in 1995. After spending several years working in the computer field, Wills earned a Master of Divinity from Drew Theological School. This degree launched him into a thriving teaching career at Pillar College in New Jersey, where he teaches courses on photography, creativity and theology. The M.Div. also informs the spiritual elements of Wills' fine art. Wills is also co-founder of Gravity Art Initiatives, a nonprofit focused on city redevelopment through the arts. Wills has written two books and has begun work on a third. These books explore a relationship between the arts and spirituality.

Wills made the transition to photography after more than two decades as a songwriter and musician. His songs "Fly Far Away" and "On Our Way to Heaven" from his CD Remains of Eden both placed among the top 500 songs in the Billboard Songwriting Contest. This background in music helps to strengthen his photography, particularly by applying the methods of creating dynamics in music to creating dynamics in the formal elements of his fine art.