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“One of Scotland’s most collectable artists Catriona Millar captures hearts and the imagination.” Scotland on Sunday
“Like a novelist or playwright Catriona Millar brilliantly combines her life experience and her imaginary world in her work. The results are unique and her richly observed, highly recognisable figurative paintings are acclaimed and collected around the world.” The Herald
“Fuelled by remakable colour and pattern Millar’s paintings possess an emotional resonance and a deep truth that cuts through the usual boundaries that often surrounds contemporary art.” Homes & Interiors
“There is a classical and indeed an ancient voice lying beneath Millar’s figures. It smiles or stares out at us telling us familiar yet half-forgotten stories about ourselves. It is this connection on a hidden level that brings Millar’s work into our lives with such a potency and lasting vigour.” The Sunday Times
“Catriona’s work adds a fresh nuance to our stable of artists. Like many Scottish painters she is a true colourist.Colour and pattern define her work but beneath the surface they portray the full spectrum of the human condition – joy, hope, longing and melancholy- and often alongside an animal companion.” Elspeth Bray, former V&A curator, Deputy Editor of the Apollo Magazine and owner of the Moncrieff-Bray Gallery in Petworth.
Ever since Catriona Millar’s 2005 Degree Show at Gray’s School of Art in Aberdeen sold out within hours her unique and highly distinctive figurative oil paintings have captivated and delighted art collectors. The Sunday Herald newspaper ranks Catriona Millar in the top five most collectable Scottish artists and her work is now in private and public collections throughout Europe, the Far East, Australia and America. Catriona Millar’s paintings speak a universal language to all ages and many schools and colleges around the world study her work.
Born in Glasgow, Catriona Millar studied at Harrogate School of Art and Grays School of Art, Aberdeen. Since the success of her sell-out 2005 degree show she has exhibited across the UK including the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh. In October 2006 she came to the attention of Charles Saatchi with her first solo exhibition at the Dundas Street Gallery, Edinburgh. Catriona Millar now lives and paints in the south east of England.
Catriona Millar’s work takes its inspiration from the stories that lie at the heart of the human condition, and the sparkle of a narrative behind the eyes of her subjects hints at everything from longing to melancholy. Her work often juxtaposes human characters with a variety of animal confidants, with some seeming physically present in the composition while others take on a talismanic quality.
Working with a palette knife, Catriona Millar applies thick layers of paint to the canvas creating a surface that draws viewers further into the piece, imbuing her subjects with a tactile quality that seems to further humanise these stylised individuals. Colourful and beguiling, her work is about the connective tissue that defines us, from the stories we tell to the worlds we imagine.
Catriona was invited to exhibit at the 2021 Florence Biennale.
Catriona Millar is listed in the 2012 edition of Who’s Who in Scotland.