Christine Miller grew up in the small town of Lockport, near Buffalo New York. Raised in a Christian home and being encouraged by her grandfather and fine artist, F. J. Miller, she has grown in an appreciation for the natural beauty of God’s creation. It has always been a natural desire and goal for her to represent the natural beauty in the world through her drawings. She has always been very moved by the masters, especially the art of Michelangelo.
Christine went to college hoping to increase her skills, but found they didn’t always encourage a realist approach. She tried other art forms, but only found fulfillment in striving for what was real.
Christine had a son in 2010 who made her realize her direction in art. She started painting her son, Donny, whom she loved. This gave Christine an even stronger desire for the skills of representational art so that she could draw her son with excellence.
At this time she found one of her most influential teachers, Constance Payne, a traditional animal painter. Through classes with Constance Payne, art finally made sense and reminded her why Christine fell in love with art in the first place. Drawing her son helped her find her purpose in portraiture. She gained a love for one of the greatest portrait artist of the 19th century, John Singer Sargent and the subject of children through Mary Cassatt.
Christine persevered in college, receiving her bachelors Degree, while also working very hard outside of class and continuing to teach herself through distance courses to find the traditional skills instruction that she desired. She studied the methods of drawing the head and understanding light through William L. Maughan’s book Drawing the head. She’s learned skills in color, painting and traditional portraiture through instructional books and DVDs of portrait artists, Margaret Baumgaetner, Alan Picard and Chris Saper. In 2014, she took a portrait workshop at the Academy of Realist Art in Toronto with Fernando Frietas and is continuing to study with this school to increase her skills and way of seeing. Studying and growing in the knowledge of things seen is an incredible experience and the inspiration is endless.
Her love for people and the personal connection she feels can only be expressed through these careful processes in painting as well as the lasting finished work. She desires that the work be not about herself, but about the subject, the beauty in the person their self and that God be given the glory.