About Jon Miller

Jon's an unpretentious Midwestern guy who grew up drawing the local landscape. "I drew a lot of barns," he recalls. "Great big barns." Life provided him a couple of vocational twists and turns, but when he returned to his art two decades later, both his soul and his palette had evolved to accommodate a much more expansive range of artistic thought. Cheerful watercolors of coastal scenes kept company with photorealistic paintings that often carried a subtle, or not-so subtle, philosophical message. Because of his insightful eye, Jon also became a highly sought-after portrait artist.

While external objects, scenes, and people inspired Jon, his finished product always bore a definitive stamp of his personal artistic perspective. Strong personal feelings and novel thoughts brought everyday subjects "out of the box" and into Jon's artistic light. Often, he challenged viewers to look at familiar elements of communal life in a very different way. Jon was rewarded not only by the satisfaction of provocation, but also by many art show prizes awarded by judges and juries.

Jon's newest work is his most courageous. As he abandons the security of external inspiration, his most current paintings clearly reflect the artist's inner life in all its complexity. Familiar elements still appear, but no longer drive the composition. Instead, themes of home, work, and play weave a continuous thread in Jon's intriguing new work. A dense compositional style in a bold palette is occasionally relieved with blank space that carries its own meaning. Viewers readily appreciate the yearning to escape and re-create within a life of obligations, and the unending flow of daily activity. Recognizable segments of life bump into each other, and even try to jump off the canvas. Those less familiar with abstract art will be relieved that the work is accessible without losing its artistic edge.

While many artists tread water in their artistic careers, Jon has solidified his artistic reputation by swimming both with the tide of common perspective, and strongly against it. His newest work is a fascinating journey inside an artist who will no doubt continue to evolve.

 

Jon Miller's Artist Statement

 

Throughout my artistic career I've been moved to both please and provoke my viewers. So up to now, my work has fallen into rather distinct categories: still life, landscape and commissioned work that reflects my strong desire to add to beauty and contentment to the lives of my viewers; and photo-realistic work that makes my viewers think. Both of these artistic aims have been close to my heart, and evident in my painting.

 

By contrast, the current phase of my artistic development is an inner journey that communicates both the boundaries and expansiveness of my own personal world. Viewers will still find beauty and elements of contentment in the new work, and they will also be able to identify many of my personal struggles. In this inner reflection, I am striving for the same honesty on canvas that I have achieved with my more representational work. This will connect me even more strongly with my viewers, and give me even more inspiration to continue evolving as an artist.