I paint because I love solving problems—even ones of my own making! I love the mindfulness that comes with applying paint to a surface. I love the weird, complex, simplicity of creating something unique out of virtually nothing. And I love the buzz I get when all the problems are solved—that feeling in my gut that lets me know that the painting needs nothing more—and nothing less.
Aesthetically-speaking it is inspired by age-worn surfaces. But my art is really an expression of my sensitivity and of my journey from a soap opera-like existence to the calm, secure, happy, place where I am now. Essentially it reflects my desire to be comfortable with being authentic and vulnerable—and also with being seen.
I work in acrylic on paper, canvas and wood. I use a variety of mark-making tools, pencil, pastel and charcoal. I find restrictions enhance my creativity so I prefer a limited palette.
There is never a plan. I have no idea at the outset how a painting will turn out. I move from free-expressive play through many layers of patching and revealing towards the final stages of precise design. Often in a trance-like state as I work—when finished—I often have no idea where the painting came from! Its meaning usually reveals itself during the process but may not become clear until the end.
Recently, my work has shifted from fully abstract to a disrupted representation of landscapes and still life.
Click the image below for a short video about my art practice and inspiration.
SCRAPS, 2021
75 x 60 cm mixed media on board
© Caroline Millar
CV
Caroline Millar (b. 1964, UK) Lives and works on the Isle of Cumbrae, Scotland
Forthcoming Solo Exhibitions
Hunter Saville, Solo Exhibition, Isle of Cumbrae Gallery, 2026
Forthcoming Group Exhibitions
Greystone Gallery, Festival Exhibition, Edinburgh, 2026
Studio 44 Gallery, Millport Artists Collective, Largs, 2026
Postcard Art Exhibit, The Hague, Netherlands, 2026
Solo Exhibitions
Brownsword Hepworth, Solo Exhibition, London, 2021
Group Exhibitions
New Glasgow Society, Glasgow Women’s Art Collective, Glasgow, 2025
Hunter Saville, Three Islands, Isle of Cumbrae, 2025
Studio 44 Gallery, Summer Show, Largs, 2024
Hunter Saville, The Cumbrae Six, 2023
Atelier Gallery, Featured Artist, Edinburgh, 2022
Art on a Postcard for International Women’s Day, online, 2021
Brownsword Hepworth, A Cabinet of Curiosities, London, 2020
Brownsword Hepworth, Winter Show, London, 2020
Brownsword Hepworth, Autumn Show, London, 2020
Dundas Street Gallery, Threads, Edinburgh, 2019
Education
Chelsea College of Art and Design, BA (Hons), 1994
Wild Landscapes - May Byrne, 2019
Creative Visionary Programme - Art2Life, 2020
Improvisation into Abstraction - David Hornung, 2025
Bibliography
The Art2Life Podcast: Becoming Alive in Art + Life - Caroline Millar - Episode 124
Tap Into Your Creativity, Sandra Felemovicius, 2021
Museum of Many Artists (moma.co.uk), Caroline Millar Interview, July 2020
Artmag, Dundas Street Gallery, Edinburgh: Threads, 11 March 2019
Related Professional Experience
Guest Instructor, ARTfuel Studio, 2025 to present day
Creator of Indigoflow, mindset platform for artists, 2025
Head of Coaching, Art2Life, 2023 - 2024
Assistant Coach, Art2Life, 2021 - 2023