ROUSSEAU AT MOMA Painting

I am fascinated and inspired by the work of great historic artists and often use their images as a starting point for my paintings. I enjoy giving something from the past a new interpretation, thus bringing Past and Present together. I was born in Detroit, Michigan. During childhood I lived in Hammond, Indiana, and teenage and early college years in California. As a child I loved making pictures and playing with puppets and these two interests determined my life as a professional artist. After completing my formal art studies at the University of Iowa, I moved to Nova Scotia and taught art to children for three years. During this time I also experimented with puppet-mask theatre. In 1972 I helped to found Mermaid Theatre, Nova Scotia and designed theatrical productions until 1986. I returned to painting part-time in 1981 and then full time in 1987. Since then I have exhibited in public and private galleries in Canada, the United States and Italy. The subjects I paint include still life, but mostly I create variations on historic masterpieces by artists I admire such as Vermeer, Mondrian and Leonardo da Vinci. In my theatrical designs I interpreted stories from the past in visual form and in my paintings I reinterpret images from the past. www.tommillerartist.com