Artist Statement

My creative process is intuitive rather than intellectual—each piece begins as an open journey, guided by the pursuit of flow. Marks and emotions dictate my actions, unfolding organically across the surface of my chosen medium. I see myself as an interpreter of the unknown, revealing something unfamiliar to the viewer while subtly evoking memories or experiences along the way.

I’m often drawn to the suggestion of the figure—not as a literal form, but as a presence that emerges through gesture, texture, and energy. It’s a way of inviting the viewer into the work, offering a point of recognition without resolution.

My paintings, my rules. If there were words for what I am trying to achieve, I would just say them. Instead, I paint. Reiteration fascinates me as a force of transformation and renewal. My work draws from Egyptian mythology, where cycles of death and rebirth shape existence, as well as Nietzsche’s concept of the eternal return—the idea that all energy and events endlessly recur across infinite time and space. Through this lens, each piece becomes part of an ongoing evolution, a visual echo of what has been and what will be again. 

Surf Station 90

In the spring of 2009 I was awarded an MTA Arts In Transit grant for the Beach 90 Station on the A line in Far Rockaway, Queens. It is one of the few subway stations in the world that you can ride to a surf break. It also happens to be the spot where I surf year round. I collaborated with the fabricator Willet Hauser to turn five of my paintings into faceted glass for the elevated station. The pieces were installed in 2011 and 2012. 

Selected Exhibitons 

2024 Superfine Art Fair 456 Building, New York, NY

2023 In It for the Long Haul (Group show) Lichtundfire Gallery, New York, NY

The Pilot (Group show) Galo Space, New York, NY

Fredric Bernstein Design and Gallery Shelter Island, NY

2020      Gold Paintings  Kala Gallery, Brooklyn, NY

2019 Faculty Art Show Carol Shen Gallery, Brooklyn, NY

2018 “New Paintings by Michael Miller” ELDER Gallery, Charlotte, NC

2017     “Vibrant” Bergen College,  Bergen, New Jersey 

    Two-person show, Mormen Moloney, Louisville, KY

2015       Summer of Love , Piedmont Art Center,  Charlottesville, VA       

2014      "Michael Miller" (Solo)  Rockaway Gallery, Queens, NY

2012       Go Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY

2011       "Michael Miller"  (Solo)   Private Exhibition,  Montauk, NY

2010      "Michael Miller"  (Solo)  Corrine Robbins Gallery   New York, NY

                 Tabula Rasa,  Piknik Gallery, Oak Bluffs, MA

 2009    "Michael Miller" (Solo)   Corrine Robbins Gallery, New York, NY

               "Michael Miller" (Solo)    Scope London,  London U.K.

2008     " Michael Miller" (Solo)   Private Exhibition,  Montauk, NY

2007     "Michael Miller"  (Solo)  Art Miami, Scope, Robert Curcio projects, Miami, FL

               "Michael Miller" (Solo)   LA Art show,  Robert Curcio projects, Los Angeles, CA  

                                                           .

Collections

Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P.

Ian Lesser

Education

School of the Art Institute Chicago  MFA 1995

New Mexico State University   BFA 1993