ART BRIEF: ‘Tangled Up in Blue’ exhibit makes Keller Gallery debut

by alexa mangrum
a&e editor

The Professional Artist Exhibit hosted through February in the Keller Gallery features the work of PLNU alumnus (’03) Bryan Miller. Miller, who recently earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in painting, completed his undergraduate studies with a concentration in graphic design. The exhibit opened in Keller on Jan. 16 and will conclude Feb. 10.
Though Miller is currently based out of Los Angeles, the exhibit features nine large-scale paintings composed of vivid imagery that draw influence from his upbringing in Hawaii.
“My aim is to create shared visceral experiences that reflect the transitory search for comfort,” Miller described.
Though Miller incorporates traditional tropical images into his work, he also seeks to expose and “embrace a more truthful and troubled reality.”
All of the pieces chosen for the Keller exhibit were originally part of his senior thesis show at Claremont Graduate School, which debuted this past October. For Miller, transporting the show proved easy as faculty and students helped transition the works from their original location in Claremont to San Diego.
“Keller Gallery hasn’t changed much since I attended Point Loma,” Miller noted. However, he said, “When I was a design major and had my senior show back in ’03, I split the space with two other students.”
Now showing his work in a solo exhibit, the gallery space seems bigger than he remembered. Regardless, while hanging the works on the walls of the gallery, Miller said the experience of returning to the space “felt as if [he] was getting a bunch of old friends together again.”
Much like any recent graduate, Miller’s plans for the future are centered on what he describes as the ever “elusive postgrad job.”
Just like the truth infused into his art, Miller knows that truthfully life after graduation may keep him on the “grind for a bit.” Ultimately, he’s “just at the beginning of it all,” he said.
To hear more from Miller, all are invited to join the artist at a reception featuring a live discussion to be held Tuesday, Jan. 24, from 6-9 p.m. in Keller Gallery.