Henry Miller

Abstract Humanity #844

Abstract Humanity #845

The explosive paintings of Henry Miller are at once lyrical and unstable. Miller, a former set designer for the film industry, has maintained a dogged focus on his personal artistic vision, painting with every free moment and carrying his canvases and prints to galleries as he traveled the United States and abroad. In 1988, with a number of gallery shows under his belt and an enthusiastic reception from the art world, he joined three other artists in a San Antonio, Texas studio and began working full-time as a painter and printmaker.

Miller's recent series of paintings continues his exploration in color that he started decades ago as a fine arts student. Typically divided into two color fields--one richly and moodily dark, the other characteristically light, Miller's recent canvases force the viewer's eye to alternate back and forth in an attempt to reconcile the two fields. Objects are noticeably absent from these paintings, yet the contrasting color fields--the murky, deep blues and the sandy, textured tans and buffs--give one the sense of viewing some stormy vision of a seashore or the bottom of a mysterious, uninhabited sea.

Color has always figured prominently in Miller's imagination and work. Says Miller, "Color, through the shapes and combinations which it is presented in, interprets the ineffable experiences of both emotion and knowledge." Miller is noted for exhibiting a thorough understanding of color theory that enhances the visual impact of his work.

Miller's works on canvas and paper have been shown in galleries worldwide and are included in many private and corporate collections.