Oscar Molina Gallery in Southampton presents the opening of “Paton Miller: Around the World in 40 Paintings,” featuring a selection of current works by the noted artist who has resided in Southampton for nearly five decades. An opening reception will be held on Saturday, November 19, from 5 to 7 PM.
Born in Seattle and raised in Hawaii, Miller studied at the Honolulu Academy of Arts then found his way to Southampton in 1974 after year-long travels around the world. Here, he pursued fine art studies at Long Island University-Southampton College. He became acquainted with an artistic circle on the East End that included Fairfield Porter’s widow, Anne. He would paint in the late Porter’s studio for over twenty years and established deep roots in this community.
While Miller has led a vibrant, peripatetic life — much of which has been lived by the water — he has remained profoundly tied to his family history and the place he considers to be home. World travel, self-knowledge, identity, and sense of place combine and motivate a unique style that involves exploration of materials and process through figure and landscape, painting and drawing, as well as abstraction and fragmentation that inhibits pure representation and straightforward narrative interpretation.
There will be an artist’s talk on Sunday, November 27, at 2 PM. The show runs through January 9.