Dana Miller

charcoal

As a hyperrealist, Dana effectively employs a unique technique using charcoal powder and Chinese bamboo brushes to create these stunning pieces. Dana had become proficient with other genres of art but began working exclusively with Charcoal in 2020 and is gaining interest internationally with her latest collection. She is a Tennessee native and resides in Thompsons Station, Tennessee.

“Art has always been my passion. I was able to use my camera for many years as my paintbrush to convey emotion. In recent years however, I went through a very dark place in my life that ended in a traumatic divorce after a 26 year marriage. While grieving the loss, COVID 19 hit and we had to quarantine. This allowed me the time I needed to focus on my own healing and to explore with my art. I knew art would be a huge source of therapy for me. I played with different mediums and I found that I really loved working with charcoal. I investigated other charcoal artists and began to follow their journey while I was discovering my own. “

“I’ve always loved ballet dancers, the motion and beauty evokes emotion in me. I also love to play with value (light and dark) gradients and contrast. Once I settled on this direction, I began journaling. Scripture verses would come to my mind that I felt resonated in my Spirit. Then I created vision boards in my journal with small drawings of my ideas related to those verses. Finally, after 60-90 hours of work developing and painting each piece, I ended up with this collection which I call Freedom. Each of the pieces in this collection reveal concepts that I have personally walked through recently in my life; light coming out of darkness, freedom from fear, transcendence, rebirth, wisdom and restoration. These works have been a source of healing and therapy for me, and I hope they are for many others.”