“Off the Gov’t Pier,” by Steve Miller, 2017, acrylic, 24 x 12 in. Collection the artist

by Jeanne Mackenzie

In this series, plein air painter and instructor Jeanne Mackenzie takes a look at new paintings by contemporary artists and points out why they succeed as painted images. This week, Steve Miller’s “Off the Gov’t Pier.”

When looking into the sun, there is often the sense that color disappears. Some artists punch that Day-Glo orange just a bit too much. Sometimes less can be more when evoking a sense of calm and wonder. The artist has kept the value of the white waves muted so that the reflection of the sun pops. It would also be interesting to see this piece with a dominant sky space or a dominant sea space (high or low horizon).


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