The Sorceress

Peter Miller

Oil on canvas, 40 x 44 inches

Signed "Peter Miller" on Verso

Framed

Peter Miller was an artist, a philanthropist, a mystic, and a woman of endless passion for nature and adventure. She and her husband Earle split their time between Pennsylvania and their ranch in Espanola, New Mexico. Bordering the San Ildefonso Pueblo and developing a trusted friendship with the Native Americans, she was greatly inspired by their culture and rituals, as well as by the deeply rooted love for their land. "Sorceress" is a wonderful record of the privilege and immersion she was granted through her friendship with the local Native Americans and the deep respect she held for the local people of the Pueblo. Peter's admiration for the beauty of the terrain evoked a sensuality in her work that was represented in her focus on spirituality through deep color saturation. 
Paul Gratz writes in the first ever published monograph on the artist: "Miller’s technique was unique. In some of her paintings, she textured the ground to mimic canyon walls. In others, she used sgraffito and applied thin veils of color that she would then skillfully and partially rub off with rags. One small area of the canvas can contain six to eight different colors. The yellows and orange underneath provide a glow of spirituality to many of her canvases. The compositions are deliberate and she had a sophisticated knowledge of color. There are paintings within the painting, layers upon layers."

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Bird and Star

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The Marriage

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Moon Wisdom

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