Charles Henry Miller was an ingenious American painter of landscapes and a member of the National Academy.
Born in Manhattan, New York, Miller’s father, Jacob Miller, was an architect and evidently furnished his son with a natural aptitude for drawing. It’s fascinating to consider whether such skills are acquired via one’s DNA or through observation and nurture. His dexterity as a draughtsman served him well as, in 1859, he enrolled at the National Academy and had a painting hung there soon after. At 18, he was already receiving encouraging plaudits from both peers and tutors.
However, despite his ability with a pencil and sketchbook, his father dissuaded him from a career in the arts and, instead, offered him two choices - law or medicine, from which the young aspirant opted for the latter. Despite this, he retained his commitment to art and enrolled at the National Academy while simultaneously undertaking medical studies at the Washington Collegiate Institute. Rarely did an hour go unwasted - this was a young man dedicated to his development.
Following graduation, he joined the New York Homeopathic Medical College, which ultimately led to his degree in 1863, and subsequent employment aboard the ‘Harvest Queen’, as the ship’s doctor. It was a heady time of tense transatlantic voyages, the occasional mutiny, and messy improvised surgery. When docked at Liverpool, he utilised his shore time to explore the delights of European art museums, such as those in London, Scotland, Antwerp and Paris. Sketchbook in hand, he studied the masters, before sailing home and sketching the Atlantic.
Evidently, the formidable works of the finest European artists proved more inspirational than the scalpel and tourniquet, as Miller quit medicine to pursue art full time. In 1867, he undertook a tour - visiting Berlin, Dresden and Vienna before settling in Munich, where he trained under the landscape painter Adolf Heinrich Lier (1826-1882).
Lier was an exciting prospect, inspired by the French ‘plein air’ painters, yet equally blessed with technical nous. He believed that landscapes should convey an overall ‘effect’ rather than focus extensively on details. Miller’s oeuvre is testament to Lier’s preference for atmosphere over obsessive granularity. As one of the first Americans to study art in Germany, he inspired numerous others to follow suit.
Upon returning to the US, he settled in Long Island and soon established himself as an artist of considerable merit. At the time, Queens County consisted of simple farming and fishing villages, scattered around plains and inlets. Occasionally, a rustic mill would break the serenity, but little else. Miller called it home and set about capturing his deeply picturesque environs, not only for the sake of good art but also for posterity. Urbanisation was a looming reality and he treasured the simpler ways of life. Indeed, when Queens and Nassau County transformed immeasurably, he pined for the innocence of yesteryear. The poet Bayard Taylor referred to him as "the discoverer of Long Island”.
Miller’s ability to deftly capture a view while also conveying a mood, captured the attention of the National Academy and he was elected a member in 1875. His forward-thinking, broadly French, approach to open air landscape painting wasn’t for everyone, however, as many of the older academicians frowned upon it. He often championed his younger, pioneering contemporaries, to the dismay of the conservative establishment.
As time passed, he continued to approach his work in the same manner, and was awarded numerous accolades, winning gold medals in Massachusetts and New Orleans, among others. In 1879, he was elected as President of the New York Art Club. During the early 20th century, his style would’ve been considered ‘old fashioned’, which is hard to believe given how radical he was just a few decades earlier.
Today, he’s remembered for recording the ever-changing landscape of Long Island, during its transition from rurality to urbanisation.
He’s represented in numerous public collections including at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Brooklyn Institute Museum, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Long Island Museum, Museum of the City of New York, National Academy of Design in New York, and the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence.
Exhibited
National Academy of Design in New York, Brooklyn Art Association, Artist's Fund Society in New York, Century Association in New York, Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition, Society of American Artists in New York, Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association in Boston, Paris International Exposition, American Water Color Society Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, Boston Art Club, Union League Club in New York, Lotos Club in New York, Paris Salon, International Exhibition in Munich, New Orleans Exposition, Art Institute of Chicago, Fifth Avenue Art Gallery in New York, World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Frederick A. Chapman Gallery in New York, Miller Studio Exhibition in New York, Brooklyn Museum Opening Exhibition, Silo Galleries in New York, Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, American Red Cross Exhibition in New York, DaFalco Art Gallery in New York.
Public Collections
Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Brigham Young University Art Museum in Salt Lake City, Brooklyn Institute Museum, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Democratic Club in New York, Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington, Long Island Museum, Museum of the City of New York, Nassau County Historical Society, Nassau County Museum of Art, National Academy of Design in New York, Parrish Art Museum in New York, Republican Club in New York, Rhode Island School of Design in Providence.
Timeline
1842
Born in New York to Jacob Miller, an architect and builder, Jane Matilda Miller (nee Taylor).
C. 1857-1860
Educated at the Mt. Washington Collegiate Institute.
1859
Enrolled at the National Academy of Art and Design.
1860
Submitted a painting to the National Academy, which was hung.
1863
Graduated from the Homœopathic Medical College in New York.
Appointed as the ship’s doctor aboard the ‘Harvest Queen’ sailing from New York to Liverpool. While in dock, he visited galleries in London, Scotland, Antwerp and Paris.
1867
Undertook a study trip to Europe, visiting Berlin, Dresden and Vienna before settling in Munich.
Trained under Adolf Heinrich Lier (1826-1882), Karl Von Piloty (1826 -1886) and Wilhelm von Kaulbach (1805-1874) at the Bavarian Royal Academy.
1870
Returned to the US.
1873
Elected an associate of the National Academy.
1875
Elected a member of the National Academy.
1877
Elected a member of the Society of American Artists.
1878
Awarded a gold medal at the exhibition of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association in Boston.
Shown at the Exposition Universelle in Paris.
1879
Elected as President of the New York Art Club.
Travelled to London and Fontainebleau, France.
1882
Contributed ‘Sunset at Purgatory, near Newport’ and ‘A Cloudy Day in Springtime’ to the Paris Salon.
1883
Elected as President of the American Commission at the Munich International Exhibition.
1885
Awarded a gold medal at the New Orleans Exposition.
Published ‘The Philosophy of Art in America’ under the pen name of Carl De Muldor.
1889
Shown at the Exposition Universelle in Paris.
1892
Shown at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
1922
Died in Queens, New York.