Dragon Face.

David Miller is a visual artist and author, with a several children’s books, such as ‘Rufus The Numbat’ and ‘Big and Me’ to his name.

He has also undertaken collaborations with other distinguished author’s such as ‘Boo To A Goose’ by Mem Fox.

He currently lives: ‘Perched high on a hill overlooking the Yarra River fare below with the Great Dividing range close enough to see individual trees on a very clear day.’

Through the windows of his quiet sanctuary he enjoys the rousing machinations of various birds.

Currently he is caught up in the goings on of the local rosella community: ‘They are squabbling over nest sites and one pair are looking serious about a spot very close to a perch the Kookaburras use to hunt from. I’m worried.’

This contemplation and appreciation of nature is reflected in David’s work.

He has a unique focus on paper sculpture, perhaps unsurprisingly, since his father was a clay sculptor and would often involve David in his work. This work requires a certain level of dexterity and attention to detail which he has been cultivating for some time now.

David has been turning flat, blank pieces of paper into creatures with character and texture since the age of 3. This attention to detail is also reflected in his atmospheric paintings which offer microcosms that aim to represent the whole.

Many of his artworks centre animals and their natural habitats, as well as hypnotically undulating fragments of landscapes. The colour palettes he uses are often vibrant in both mediums however his paintings provide a more calming, meditative effect, which is the form David devotes most of his time to these days.

David describes his childhood as ‘very happy and fulfilled’ which is strongly reflected in his art style and subjects.

David’s paper sculptures use primary colours in a joyful, childlike way and by virtue of being 3 dimensional posses a pleasing tactility and depth that draws the reader into the action. For example, one might want to reach out and pet his animals, the tiger emerging from the bamboo forrest or the mischievous little Numbat flying through the air on a skateboard. Seemingly in anticipation of this natural urge to interact with his artworks, David’s first dip into the publishing industry was through releasing a book with instructions on how to create one’s own paper sculptures at home, titled ‘You Can Make Paper Sculptures’. Of this inaugural project he says:

‘From this, I was given the opportunity of illustrating Mem Fox’s book BOO TO A GOOSE. Which launched me into 20 years of illustrating children’s picture books, some of which I authored as well as illustrated.’

David uses his art as a way to connect and communicate with the people around him.

‘Art is a large part of who I am,’ he said. ‘It is how I see the world. How I express myself and how I understand others.’

What he loves most about art is its potential to move people. In an interview for the Satellite Foundation David conjures a cozy image of children reading or having his books read to them for bed time, and speaks of how this idea thrills him.

On the subject of kites, David admits that he never managed to fly a kite when he was young:

‘Which is strange as there was a white box kite on the top of the wardrobe in my childhood bedroom. We just never got round to flying it. However I took my children camping by the ocean where the onshore afternoon breeze lifting over sand dunes was perfect for kite flying and we would have several swooping above us with their lines tethered to heavy clumps of wet seaweed.’

The image of him and his children below a sky filled with kites is endearingly picturesque and I find myself imaging it captured as one of David’s own paper sculptures.

David’s kite creation is of a bright blue, green and red Chinese dragon’s head, seeming to leap from the page. He mentions his use of a similar dragon in the aforementioned ‘Rufus The Numbat’ book. The magnificent sculpture of the dragon’s resplendent winding body, replete with ferocious teeth and layers of turquoise, silver and crimson scales, is now located in a Chinese museum in Bendigo.

David continues to spend his time painting and hands on sculpting. He is currently conceptualising a design out of his friends discarded plastic chicken feeders as well as working on a large painting of a wooden spinning top that was his father’s.

David’s art is available through https://www.yava.org.au/davidmiller

By Adelaide Stolba.