February Artist of the Month: Camille Woods

Camille Woods is an artist based in Johnson City, TN and Austin, TX and is passionate about expressing the beauty and fragility of life through her paintings. With her use of bright colors and bold strokes, Camille seeks to create a connection between the painting and the viewer.

She works mainly in portraiture and landscapes, telling stories of both internal and external struggles. Through the use of color and composition, Camille channels the underlying strength of our individual and collective ability to not only survive, but to thrive in the face of adversity. Through her work, Camille creates a physical representation of the emotional connection we all have to our individual landscapes, ourselves, and each other, engaging the viewer with a strong visual story.
 
“Dana is by far one of the best in her field. She consistently provides an amazing service. Her eye for color matching is one of a kind. The color and texture of each print of my artwork looks exactly like the original paintings. I feel so good being able to give my art buyers such a high-quality print. My interactions with Dana have always been pleasant. She’s responsive and super helpful and just a really kind human.”

Contact Camille:
Instagram: @camillewoodsart
Website: camillewoodsart.com

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

November Artist of the Month: Lori Sonnier

Lori Sonnier creates colorful paintings inspired by the beauty and vibrant colors of the natural environment. She has a background in biology and worked for a decade in environmental management. But she was always interested in art and began taking art classes at night through UCLA Extension while working full-time.

In 2006, her family moved to Austin when her husband was hired as a faculty member at UT. “We really like Texas and were so excited to move to Austin”. Shortly after arriving, Lori began taking painting classes through The Art School at The Contemporary Austin (Laguna Gloria). She also did painting workshops in Santa Fe, New Mexico with Albert Handell and Lee Rommel and began painting both indoors and outdoors. “I hope that my paintings bring joy to people, and that they help people appreciate the beauty that is around us in the world”.
  
Lori came to Miller IDS in 2022 to find a local business partner in creating fine art prints and notecards. “It has been great working with Dana Burton at Miller on my prints. They have turned out very well and I am happy to say they are made locally here in Austin. Dana has a great eye for color and detail, and the staff at Miller have been a pleasure to work with.”
 
Read the rest of Lori’s feature on our website.

Contact Lori:
Instagram: @lorisonnier.art
Website: lorisonnier.com
Email: lorisonnier.art@gmail.com

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

October Artist of the Month: Rachel Hurst

Rachel is the youngest child of famed western artist Oleg Stavrowsky. Like her seven siblings, she grew up surrounded by world class art, learning the principles of good composition and design through constant exposure. She won her first art contest in 3rd grade and after college traveled to Italy to study Renaissance art. She soon began earning her living painting enormous ceiling and wall murals in the Italian fresco style.  
 
Rachel eventually discovered her passion for fine art on a much smaller scale, incorporating three of her favorite things: animals, abstract design, & color. She loves to juxtapose representational animals against an abstract background – backgrounds she paints to communicate the way she feels when looking at a particular creature. 
 
Rachel always exclusively has her fine art reproductions printed by Dana Burton – Miller’s fine art specialist. “Dana is an artist herself so she really understands the need to produce an accurate color match when making prints. She is an amazing person to work with and the turnaround times are great!”
 
Rachel happily donates 10% of all her art sale profits to Safe In Austin: a facility that homes and rehabilitates neglected animals and lovingly connects them with groups of abused and neglected children, allowing mutually loving relationships to develop between the two groups. She lives in Austin with her husband Travis and their two insane cats.  
 
Contact Rachel:
Instagram: @RachelHurstFineArt
Facebook: Rachel Hurst Fine Art
Website: RachelHurstFineArt.com
 
Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

September Artist of the Month: Kara Buse

A Central Texas native, artist and photographer Kara Buse finds beauty in the uniqueness of each individual, the diversity of the planet, and mother nature in all her glory. Kara is driven to discover the balance between expressing something that is deeply meaningful and creating a sense of joy that will touch the lives of others through her work.

Kara uses visual storytelling to showcase the organic, visceral human experience where words often fail. This is the WHY behind Kara’s work, and the reason for the Y in Wyld Roots. Kara has had the privilege of working with some of the most inspiring creatives and brands: strangers and friends who have supported and contributed to making Wyld Roots an inimitable lifestyle platform.

“I have been a loyal customer of Miller for going on 4 years now and I couldn’t be more happy with the quality of their work and people. Dana, the fine arts specialist, has given me so much joy by helping me honor the meaningful photography in my life through printed and tangible artifacts that I have sold in galleries or hung in my own home. She has nurtured my understanding of the art of printing and I am very grateful!”

Contact Kara:
Instagram: @wyld_roots
Website: wyldroots.com

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

July Artist of the Month: Ruth Lauer

Ruth Lauer studied at the Minneapolis School of Art and Design and lived for 10 years in Europe. She moved to Austin, Texas, in 1991 for the music. Working in oil and acrylic, Ruth’s paintings celebrate everyday life, community and/or poke fun at her own and humanity’s foibles. The featured painting, “Shirley’s Chicken Run”, was inspired by a neighbor’s backyard. The original painting sold, but prints are available.
 
I create portraits, sometimes of people, food or animals, but also of private moments in public settings. I try to portray the emotion that a memory holds, and the calm of commonplace beauty.  And sometimes I just want to push color around.” An admirer of religious and narrative art, Ruth would like her paintings to evoke a personal memory or emotion in viewers.
 
Ruth has been using the Fine Art Services at Miller IDS for 20 years. “Dana Burton and the other friendly, professional staff at Miller IDS are a joy to work with. Dana knows the technicalities of art printing and always delivers an amazing product. Her eye is true.”
 
Contact Ruth:
Email: ruthybob56@hotmail.com

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

June Artist of the Month: Richard Banh

Richard Banh was born in Vietnam and moved to Chapel Hill, NC with his family in 1975. Drawing and painting have been his passion since an early age. While attending North Carolina State, Richard was drawing cartoons and making short comic strips in between earning his degree in Mathematics and Computer Sciences. His cartoon series was published in the university’s Technician newspaper during his senior year.
 
From early 2007 to late 2009, Richard took classes from artist Denise Larue Mahlke, PSA. He was hoping to learn to paint with oil, though after a few lessons, Denise introduced him to pastels. “Their vibrancy and range of detail allow me to me to express my subjects’ emotions and my passion towards them.”

“My family is always inspiring my creativity and drive to make art. I’m married to my wonderful wife, with whom I have two beautiful daughters. And from my girls, I have 2 beautiful grandcats (as seen in some of my more recent paintings) and 2 granddogs (who have yet to be captured in pastel or paint).”

“My practice encompasses various subjects, such as landscape, still life, animals, and portraits. I love to capture the passing of clouds, or trickling streams, and even some feathered and furry friends.”
 
“Miller is the best place to get digital images for my paintings. The staff is always helpful and friendly. Dana is wonderful to work with, her knowledge of color accuracy is superb! You can always count on great results.”

Contact Richard:
Website: Austin Art & Frame

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

 

April Artist of the Month: Paul Stankiewicz

Sometimes inspiration comes from childhood memories or a song on the radio, urban nature and iconic Austin scenes.

Paul Stankiewicz creates a broad range of images that reflect his varied interests and versatility as an artist. Paul graduated with a degree in Industrial Design from Columbus College of Art and Design. He started his career in advertising, then video production, 3D animation and computer game art direction. In his art, he uses everything from large canvases that are sanded down and washed, to layered cut wood panels that are animated with the crank of a handle.

Not literal replicas, Paul’s paintings weave together layers of color and texture to create an impression of the subjects. The designs typically begin with his photos manipulated in the computer, creating layers . . . reality rearranged. The paint then creates an image that is vivid and recognizable and sometimes has the illusion of a photo-like image, but up close the work is distinctly abstract. “I try to resist the temptations of smaller detail brushes. I want the viewer to complete the picture as they want, in their mind. I wish I could say that my process starts with exhaustive research and in-depth studies, but usually I dive right in. I look forward to the learning that is about to take place as each new work reveals itself.”

“In an earlier life when I was in advertising, I visited Miller Blue Print many times to pick up supplies, or graphics for advertisings and presentations. Now I have been visiting Miller again, Miller Imaging, for high end scanning and reproductions of my paintings. They have been a great asset, always putting in the extra time and effort to make their product the best possible.”

Contact Paul:
Website: paulswork.com

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

March Artist of the Month: Becca Borrelli

Becca Borrelli is a nationally recognized illustrator, muralist, educator and speaker, based out of Austin, TX. Her digital drawings, original paintings, and intuitive art making courses are avenues to share a hopeful and playful representation of the world’s magical sides. Both her work and art classes invite viewers to reflect on the invisible and intuitive aspects of their lived spaces and experiences.

Borrelli has a B.A. in Art Education from Kent State University, and an M.A. from the University of Texas Austin. She has created art for clients such as Visa, Boston Beer, Dell Children’s Medical Center, University Hospital Rainbow Babies & Children Cleveland, Dell Medical School and The University of Texas. Her derivative retail/wholesale products are sold across Texas, where she is most known for her line of adult coloring books. She has worked with organizations such as the Austin Downtown Alliance, Dell Children’s Medical Center, and Mindful Classrooms to develop coloring books as education tools.

She teaches corporate art courses for Facebook teams nationally, in-person courses at Austin Contemporary Art School, as well as virtual on-demand art courses for her online artist community: The HeART School. Between 2018 and 2020, Becca co-founded Austin female based maker collective Lemon House: a local venue that hosted maker events, classes, art shows and community groups.

When Becca isn’t making art, she’s exploring Austin with her husband, son, and two super-pups Layla and Rose.

“I learned of Miller IDS a decade ago as the preeminent Austin printer for beautiful reproductions and large-scale scanning. In the early days as an independent artist, they scanned and printed ink doodles I made for fun. I would sell them on a patchworked blog to friends with cut and paste PayPal buttons. I was a scrappy young artist and I loved their gorgeous, reliable work. Even more, I loved chatting with Larry each time I visited. I was a small account, and yet everyone knew me by my first name and treated me like a friend.
 
Fast-forward to today, they are still supporting my work via a burgeoning wholesale business. I love working with Dana Burton in the Fine Art department. She always gives lightning-fast responses, helps work through problems, and each print job is beautiful. In 2020 I partnered with Dell Children’s Medical Center on a digital mural. When my initial production partner fell through, I reached out to Miller. Their graceful assistance mid-project on one of the largest artworks of my career was when I knew I was in love. This business has been around for a long time and it shows. I trust them implicitly and would emphatically urge anyone to work with them on all projects large or small. This is by far my favorite print shop in Austin!”

Contact Becca:
Website: beccajborrelli.com

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.

February Artist of the Month: Juliet Whitsett

Juliet Whitsett (she/her) is an Austin, TX based Artist and Arts & Environmental Educator with a Master’s Degree in Community-Based Arts Education from the University of Texas at Austin. Her artistic practice focuses on endangered and threatened species works and community arts installations such as the co-creation and curation of @reallysmallmuseum_atx, nature-immersed Biodiversity of Texas Art Walks (2021, 2022), and an audio-based Audio Wild series. Her current fine art series, Biodiversity of Texas addresses Threatened, Endangered and Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) in Texas. For this work she samples colors from actual images of Texas’ rarest and most vulnerable species to create original digitally-based art inspired by their unique palettes, lives and forms. She has recently completed an Artist Residency and solo show at Wild Basin Creative Research Center (2022), as well as a solo show at Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center (2022).
 
Juliet has designed public programs and family events for institutions such as the High Line, University of Texas’ Planet Texas 2050, Botanical Research Institute of Texas | Fort Worth Botanic Garden, The Bullock Texas State History Museum, the Thinkery and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. She has served as an arts and education consultant to individuals and organizations both domestically and internationally.
 
“I actually look forward to the days I pick up my work at Miller IDS. From the moment you walk in the door, you know it is a special place of business. The customer service at Miller is really special (Larry brightens any day!), it’s obvious that strong relationships, kindness, integrity and quality are paramount here. As a fine artist, it is more than a pleasure to work with Dana as she is so talented and absolutely dedicated to the most professional and stunning results. It feels good to know my art and work is in the most capable hands.”
 
Contact Juliet:
Juliet’s Instagram: @juliet_whitsett_art
Really Small Museum Instagram: @reallysmallmuseum_atx
Website: giddyupartstudio.com

Contact our fine art specialist, Dana Burton, for more information on fine art scans and reproduction.
 

Graphics Feature: Urbanspace Sales Center

Since 2000, Urbanspace has served as Austin’s first and only full-service urban core living solutions company, providing real estate development, sales, and marketing expertise — amplified by our in-house interior design studio + modern furniture showroom — with an intense passion for living the urban lifestyle. We are an organization committed to Austin’s growth and development, with an emphasis on architectural design, sustainable development, urban communities and modern design products from around the globe.

Urbanspace put their stamp on the Austin skyline with The Modern Austin Residences, a 56 story condo tower entirely developed, marketed, and sold by Urbanspace. To create an immersive sales center experience for their buyers, they worked with us to take advantage of the vertical space on the walls and windows, with displays that included a panoramic aerial view from the tower, a map of the vibrant neighborhood surrounding The Modern, and a timeline of Urbanspace’s major milestones.

“The sales center turned out even better than we hoped, and a lot of the credit goes to the Miller IDS team. We were impressed by their professionalism and the quality of the work. They made the process of moving from conceptual designs to reality a breeze. We had a great experience working with Miller!” – Robbie Polk

For more information on Urbanspace: 
Main website: www.urbanspacelifestyle.com 
The Modern website:  www.modernaustinresidences.com 
Instagram (Real Estate): @urbanspacerealtors
Instagram (Interiors): @urbanspaceinteriors
Instagram (Design Studio): @urbanspacedesignstudio

To get started on your own graphics project, contact Sydney at CSSR@MillerIDS.com.