Interview
Katherine Downey Miller
Katherine Downey Miller is a Boston-based painter interested in using abstractions in nature to explore environmental issues.
She received her BS in painting from Skidmore College, and her MFA in illustration from The School of Visual Arts Illustration as a Visual Essay Program. Katherine has been exhibiting for many years, nationally and internationally.
Although trained in illustration, Katherine has always been a painter, moving between the worlds of representation and abstraction.
Working from the lines of the land, building up layers and transparencies, emphasizing the power of brushstrokes. Her work is about a contained chaos, yet in a structured way - whether it be more representational or a movement towards full abstraction.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I’ve been an artist for as long as I can remember. I have always painted. I grew up in New England and always travelled with my family as a young girl, so I feel I was exposed to the world. I grew up with hearing loss, and I think that made me hyper-focused on art and practice.
After delving into teaching and developing my painting practice, I was a teaching assistant in painting and drawing at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, Colorado. I then moved to Florence, Italy on a teaching scholarship in painting and drawing at SACI. Since then, I have been in the Boston area, developing my practice and teaching, and I have participated in many solo and group exhibitions.”
What inspires you?
“Growing up, I had a skylight above my bed. The light that poured through, always a different temperature and hue depending on the ever-changing New England seasons, is at the root of my paintings. Through pelting rain, dampened by snow, or seeping through fallen leaves, the light flooded through that framed slice of sky and instilled in me an understanding of nature as a fluidity, movement, and light.
That understanding of nature drew me to other dynamic natural phenomena - namely, water and fire. All my life, I’ve spent a lot of time at the ocean. It is the vast unknown, a life force, and I am drawn to its currents, its movement, and of course, its light. In a recent series, ‘Liquid and Luminosity’, I worked in a mixture of oil and acrylic to capture that light. I wanted to create the sensation of seeing the water from below the surface, looking up, and seeing the blurry surface in constant motion while shafts of light cut through, completely still. When I finished, the series contained everything I felt about water and the ocean.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“I tend to pursue environmental themes. My work is environmental in nature, and metaphorical in emotion. I don’t focus on one environmental issue. In 2019, ‘Liquid and Luminosity’ was a solo exhibit about the ocean: my memories growing up near the ocean, light, bioluminescence. Since 2021, I’ve been focusing on a series of paintings about the wildfires out West and throughout the world. The series is called ‘Wild Fire/Wild Heart’. It started with the wildfires in Australia, which were so horrific. Then friends in California told me how awful it was and sent me pictures. Although horrifying, the imagery was beautiful. In terms of abstractions, I feel nature is the best teacher.”
“An underlying theme in my work is the great beauty and power that can come from sadness; a beauty that becomes a source of hope.”
How would you describe your work?
“My work is a build-up of gestural drawing and painting, using color as metaphor, composition and narrative based. From loose landscapes to abstraction.
I have a background in illustration, and though these works are abstract, they tell a story. In them, light is the heroine and it follows a dramatic character arc, facing obstacles that transform it along the way. For me, the abstraction in these works is rooted in a process of paring down the beauty of nature to minimal complexity. It is an intimate process of condensing, eliminating and illuminating that is both a creative and intellectual process. My work relies on my strong foundation in drawing and painting, the power of my brushstroke and the peace residing within me while I paint.”
Which artists influence you most?
“Richard Diebenkorn and Jackie Saccoccio are 2 artists who influence my work.”
What is your creative process like?
“When painting, I initially transport shapes to an abstraction. Then, working in layers, incorporating the honesty/purity of color, I build up, rework, and may even reorganize the forms. The rhythm of my brush communicates the landscape’s liveliness and freedom. Sometimes, to further satisfy my aesthetic, I decide to turn the painting in a different direction. My goal is to share a particular visual and emotional moment; to excite the attention of the viewer; to maintain the (delicate) relationship between human and nature.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“The role of an artist is to communicate. It doesn’t matter what they communicate, as long as it’s honest and powerful. The artist's role in society evolves as they evolve as an artist and individual, and in how they see the world.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“My 2 most noteworthy exhibitions are:
- 2019, ‘Liquid and Luminosity’ at FP3 Gallery, Boston, MA. You can read more about this series here.
- 2021, ‘Reflection’, Boston Artists Catch Light. You can read the review here.
You can also read more about my art here: Boston Voyager.”
