Works by Miles Bair

Miles Bair’s deceivingly simple imagery and straightforward juxtapositions convey the temporal coexistence of cultural edifice and nature in both the real and the imagined world. He directs us to the ethereal beauty of natural spaces. Bair’s paintings have a highly resolved, handmade quality—a dot pattern emerges. The dots do not reference the pixel or digital processes; the dots simultaneously create illusions of solidity and space while breaking down  the painting surface into a series of small marks. Large areas of gold or silver gilding evoke Japanese Kano and Rimpa screen paintings. These gilded passages suggest a balance of orders and metaphorical meanings while integrating an architectural sensibility into the paintings. Bair frequently visits and works in Japan where nature and culture are intertwined. In Japan, gardening is a centuries-old high art. In Bair’s work, as in the garden, the traditional elements--waterfall, rocks, trees, and birds, all convey subtle meanings and elicit a sensual response. Although the artist’s work is influenced by Japanese aesthetics it is also situated among the traditions of early Modernism and American scene painters.

"The sun and the moon, and the days and the months, are eternal travelers-all. The years wander on upon the sea, traversing creation, drawn by windblown clouds, into a lifetime of wandering. Every day is a journey, and in the journey itself, one finds a home." - Matsuo Basho from the Narrow Road to the Interior.

Cedars on the Bluff 50" x 40" Acrylic paint and metallic leaf on canvas, 2004 Miles Bair	Finch and Waterfall 50" x 40" Acrylic paint and metallic leaf on canvas, 2005 Miles Bair

Akame: Waterfall and Autumn Leaves 50" x 40" Acrylic paint and metallic leaf on canvas, 2004 Miles Bair	Water and Rock 50" x 40" Acrylic paint and metallic leaf on canvas, 2004 Miles Bair

Peaches and Waterfall 36" x 24" Acrylic paint and metallic leaf on canvas, 2003 Miles Bair	Dusk on the Bluff 50" x 40" Acrylic paint and metallic leaf on canvas, 2003 Miles Bair

Green Heron, Pearls Upon a String 66" x 48" Acrylic on canvas, 2003 Miles Bair	White bird, Winter 48" x 38" Acrylic on canvas, 2002 Miles Bair

Woodpecker, Water Splashing 66" x 48" Acrylic on canvas, 2003	Akame: Bridge 50" x 40" Acrylic paint and metallic leaf on canvas, 2003

Night Heron: Glistening 40" x 36" Acrylic on canvas 2002	In the Park 36"x30" Acrylic & silver leaf 2005

Violin for the Illinois Youth Symphony  acrylic and gold leaf 2005

Waterfall and White Bird, acrylic & gold leaf, 2006 Miles Bair