ANNE MILLER
My mind is constantly processing design like a light that I can not switch off and the simplicity of daily life can provide unexpected inspiration. One such inspiration came from the simple act of brushing my horses tail. I looked at the tangled mass of wiry black and white hairs and I was momentarily fixated by it’s linear quality. I saw a fluid looping mass of lines and it’s smoothness and texture stuck with me.
I collected the hair from the brush and immediately placed it in my journal and continued to refer back to the resemblance of beautiful lines. It had its own magic for me… This was the beginning of ‘Swish’
I’ve always try to create a line or mark that has life in it. And if I am calculated I will loose all vitality and my freedom. I feel this energy in many things that I see about me and I try to channel it into my own art practice.
Recently at a workshop Lorna Crane demonstrated the art of brush making with found objects from nature and I was captivated with her process. Lorna said, “Using brushes was like unlocking a language, each brush holding its own unique feel and quality. But it was the unexpected mark, pushing me out of my comfort zone that appealed- the loss of control introducing a new-found freedom which I then connected to drawing again in a fresh and exciting way.”
Lorna says this so beautifully, and her words were a catalyst which gave me the inspiration to make my own horse hair brushes and explore their mark making qualities.
This new process felt organic, raw and alive with the energy of the horse! Having made my own collection of brushes this gave me a new expression of marks, a ‘new territory’ which in turn created a new visual dialogue for me to explore.
I asked my new tools to take me on a ride that freed me up in a way that has been unchartered and liberating. It’s like ‘leap frogging’ and feeling the confidence to jump and land somewhere new. I thrive on going to new places it’s the adventurer in me.
I started to experiment with my new brushes and let myself ‘unthink’ and just allow myself to respond with an instinctive force. This became thrilling. I added tea bags and the tea water added tone, texture and natural colour. I explored collage in a new way for me. I created a bank of marks using different mediums and a combination of horse hair and thread. I was having fun!
It was obvious to me that design, composition, textures, patterns and colour all become part of my instinctual desire to create and a natural narrative began……
Anne Miller
ANNE MILLER / CV
Born Melb, 1963
1985 BA Graphic Arts and Communication, Swinburne Institute of Technology
AWARDS AND PRIZES
2014 Highly Commended & Peoples Choice,
Great Southern Portrait Prize, Foster 2015 2nd Prize, Great Southern Portrait Prize, Foster
EXHIBITIONS
2004 Torquay Plant Gallery ‘Seed’ Group Show
2010 CAE Group Show, Nicholas Building Melb
2012 Equine Carnivale and Members Summer Show, Toora Artist Collective Gallery, Toora
2014 Great Southern Portrait Prize, Foster
2014 Helen Bassett Gallery Group Exhibition, Yarraville
2015 Great Southern Portrait Prize, Foster
2016 Helen Bassett Gallery, Solo Exhibition, Yarraville
2017 MORE: Things of Wood and Stone, Group Show
Artspaces, The Fish Creek Hotel
Measurement, Group Show, Gecko Studio Gallery, Fish Creek
Anne Miller – mixed media – untitled
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