MELANIE MILLER

The work reinterprets the idea of looking at the overlooked from a tradition of still life. The objects, lost/ found/ discarded, are real, resonant, they are part of intimate narratives, removed from their original contexts, and they are reborn with new and ambiguous meaning.

I am interested in painting slowing down the process of looking. The ‘found objects’ are painted life size; their small scale invites close scrutiny and an intimate focus.

I found the hydrangea head broken off on my way to the studio one day, I know immediately if I want to paint an object and when it dried out it featured in other paintings. I work in oils on gesso panels. The process is quite laborious but I like the complexity of the surface that I get with the build up of the oil paint.