Beauty is all around us, including all those places we never look. I regard art as the deliberate attempt by someone who recognizes such beauty to draw attention to it, and to communicate a sentiment or to leave an impression for others to enjoy.
My interest in art is largely the result of the wonder I have felt in my explorations as a world traveler. But I’m not one for packaged tours and tourist destinations. It’s the interesting little nooks and the hard-to-get-to niches that I like, and I’ve found that photographs never seem to do them justice. Art is interesting to me because it always comes from memory, and we choose and even alter what we remember based on the impression it leaves on us. The artist is the one who can find the elusive balance between the actual and the ideal in order to present a certain image to the one viewing the art, which is neither real like a photograph, nor momentary like the visual imprint which is only in our mind at the exact moment we are focused on it, because a piece of art can last many generations.
Some artists prefer abstract subject matter, while some prefer realism or impressionism. I don’t have a preference, because I paint what I am feeling and thinking about at the time it interests me. I think art is objectively good when it is beautiful, but that beauty is a matter of perception and therefore transcends natural limitations. While I understand the need of a creator to indulge in self-expression, I also don’t find much value in abstract art if it doesn’t convey a meaning to the one viewing it, so all my abstract paintings are meant to tell a story. While I have spent the least amount of time practicing portraits, this is actually my favorite genre simply because I love making other people happy by encapsulating what is important to them in an archival way. There aren’t many feelings that can trump seeing someone find so much value in your work that it brings them to tears. I like to create and paint as a hobby, but ultimately I’ve chosen art as a profession because only good comes from it.
With regard to technique, I paint the way that feels naturally to me, characterized by loose brushstrokes and technical consideration mainly to composition, color and light effect—characteristics which I believe would best describe American impressionism. While I am interested in a variety of mediums, I have focused on painting in acrylics on stretched canvas except where size is the main consideration simply because I think every artist should try to master a particular medium and I never really veered from my initial approach. I like how acrylic paint is sometimes easy to manipulate and sometimes unpredictable, as these are the two qualities which I think set the foundation for a good artistic medium. I plan on showing pieces painted with oil once I feel I have apprehended that medium.
I settled in northwest Ohio in 2014 and am happy to call it my home. As of 2021, I am working on a series of landscapes showcasing places from the beautiful Metroparks of the Greater Toledo area.
Paul Miller