We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Cameron Miller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Cameron below.

Hi Cameron, thanks for joining us today. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

I am definitely happy to be an artist and completing my work gives me a great sense of accomplishment, however, the opposite is also true. There are plenty of times I feel I failed to achieve what I was looking for. Sometimes I start a painting with such high hopes I have no other option but to let myself down. Other times I have no idea what I plan to paint and it ends up being someone’s favorite. During those times where I am down on myself I definitely wonder what it would be like to have a regular job. The answer comes to my mind almost immediately and that is I wouldn’t like it one bit. I planned to be an artist from day 1 and here I am.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have always been an artist. My goals as an artist have changed a few times over the years but the answer for me was always art. As a kid I wanted to do comic books. Then I went to college for Illustration/visual communication. In college I had explored many different art forms, painting, film, graphic design, sculpture and more. Somewhere in there I started leaning more towards painting or traditional media. I liked the idea of not being on the computer. Fast forward to now, my body of work is mostly of floral oil paintings and figure drawings. That time spent exploring other methods did not go to waste. Oddly, a lot of my education in illustration transferred over to film. After college I worked in Hollywood on multiple film sets for shows like American Horror Story and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Film became my second passion next to fine art. Now I live in Florida, directing commercials on a part time schedule and the other half of my time I spend painting. I will be doing plein air paintings of landscapes, beaches, towns and I might even travel for this. I would like to paint some famous places.

My art focuses on being realistic but not hyper realistic. I like being able to see brush strokes and mixed paint. My paintings have texture, looseness and attention to light. The main concept I search for when painting is looseness. Have you ever seen a painting at a distance and it looks like a photo but then when you get close it turns into random brush marks? This is what I strive for. While this sounds classical I think the majority of art you see out there isn’t this way thus making traditional art the new way to rebel against the norm. I frame them in black and gold frames usually. I imagine them going in someone’s personal library or lounge room. I also can do custom framing on my paintings so if black and gold isn’t your thing I have frames for you.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Art is subjective, however that doesn’t mean there is no bad art. Your art doesn’t get a free pass just because you said it’s art. Try and learn a technique or watch some tutorials. I hate nothing more than when someone splashes a cup of acrylic paint on a cheap canvas and now gets to call themselves an artist. As much as I may not like it that is what they are, an Artist. The only thing I can do is urge people to practice a finer craft. Go learn something. Get better at it. Suffer the same struggles I did while trying to learn art. Pay homage to the great artists of our past. You might not know this but it is a huge disrespect to other artists out there pouring blood, sweat and tears into making something beautiful just for someone to bandwagon. Harsh I know, but please practice practice practice and maybe our world will have some respect again.

Secondly, pay more for art. I think if I break down time invested vs my prices I might not even make minimum wage on a few paintings. If the artist you are purchasing from has any sort of “staying power” your investment might only go up. I like to make my pieces as close to being on the same level as “jewelry” as possible. That way when you buy from me you feel the value and that the painting’s value can go up over time. Heck, when I die, you might be a millionaire. So look for quality!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding thing about being an artist I think is the type of problem solving we have to do. We have to answer questions in a truly unique way. I’ve had many clients from film or graphic design jobs that look for a creative solution to separate them from competitors, get more brand recognition, look more professional etc. etc.. The problem can be anything and the solution has to be something visual. It’s not math, where there is only one correct answer. There are many correct answers but which one is best? I think the most rewarding thing as an Artist is solving problems with the BEST answer. This definitely applies to my own art as well.

I don’t know if non-creatives know that many of us artists think this way. I have ton’s of clients who think they know their brand well enough to instruct me on what kind of decisions should be made creatively. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t. So advice for the non-creatives out there: Put trust in your artists. They are problem solvers. They think differently than you do. They might not look like mathematicians but they work as hard as one.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cameronmillerart.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hail_cameron/

Image Credits
Brody Martin https://www.instagram.com/nearbymarket/