WHAT: "Landscape Paintings Show," featuring the works of Nicholas Woods, Robert Stark, Heidi Lockwood, Michael Gaudreau, Stephanie DeManuelle and Bear Miller. "Vry Roussin (1944-2004) and Friends" featuring paintings, ceramics, sculpture, jewelry and the unknown.
WHEN: Through Sept. 7.
WHERE: The Corscaden Barn, 58 Beers Bridge Way, Keene Valley (1.5 miles south of Keene Valley on Route 73).
HOURS: noon to 5 p.m. Friday through Monday; open in the fall 2 to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays until Columbus Day weekend.
PHONE: Martha Corscaden at 576-9850.
WEB SITE: www.kvartbarn.com
KEENE VALLEY — Bear Miller first vacationed in the Adirondacks in his mother's womb.
His mother's mother married into a family with deep Adirondack roots, the Hand family of Elizabethtown.
Miller has painted in oils since high school and is transitioning from a high-school history teacher to full-time artist.
"I'm off to a pretty good start with Martha's show this summer," said Miller, who lives in Washington, D.C. "I'm selling much more and producing much more."
His paintings are part of Martha Corscaden's "Landscape Paintings Show," featuring the work of Nicholas Woods, Robert Stark, Heidi Lockwood, Michael Gaudreau and Stephanie DeManuelle at the Corscaden Barn in Keene Valley.
Miller's work includes "October Sunrise," "Heaven" and "Midsummer Spectacle." Most of his paintings were done this year in his free time after school and on weekends.
"I have a little studio in the basement of our house that has some ventilation. I'm working on making it a little better. I paint Adirondack landscapes down there. It transports me to the place I really like to be: up here."
He interprets his photographic references with longing and emotionally connects forms and colors through brush and paint.
"When I'm up here, I like to paint outside and paint the same scene again and again and push through the essence of that, in terms of the form and color. I look at the same scene at different times of day."
"Trinity Falls 2" and "Trinity Falls 3" are examples of his returning gaze to a specific subject. His canvas size is increasing, and he has completed works in a single session.
"The goal this summer was to focus four or five hours and produce a good canvas."
He makes the drive from D.C. as often as he can. During the many years he lived in South America, he managed to get his Adirondack August fix. During July, he and his wife live in Ecuador.
"I've done some good paintings down there, but I've never tried to sell any of them."
He appreciates the difference of the geography, mountain ranges and people wandering the Andes. Mountain people and culture amaze him with their essence, which permeates music and food.
"It's really just a treat to be in the mountains."
During this hiatus, he is producing daily.
"It's what I'm focused on doing. One of my mentors, Bob Stark, is in this show. He's a very successful painter. He has shown at the Phillips Gallery, where Harold Weston had one of his first big shows there when he was my age. It's amazing how connected all these things are."
"Porter Reflects" exemplifies how Miller paints what he knows.
"All the paintings are subjects right around our house. I have a lot of emotional attachment, whether it's Porter Mountain or a view of the range or the brook behind our house."
Chapel Pond is the center of his universe.
"Jimmy Goodwin (an esteemed 46er, who climbed Mount Marcy 197 times, and one of the creators of the Adirondack Trail Improvement Society) saw my big 'Chapel Pond' and said, 'You captured the essence of the Adirondacks in that painting,'" Miller said.
"That's the greatest compliment I ever received. He's a living legend of the mountains."
E-mail Robin Caudell at: rcaudell@pressrepublican.com
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