Artist 2017: Richard Kirk Mills

Last year at Stagecoach Richard Kirk Mills exhibited paintings, this year he’s presenting a survey of prints done over the past several decades: Etchings inspired by gardening and garden design, painterly screen prints and lithographs of NYC, collagraphs of Wyoming, monotypes of interiors and riffs on Bonnard, screen prints of Maine, Cape Cod and Florida. Over the years Mills has used prints as studies for paintings and vice versa, starting with drawings on site and working out the often complex layers of transparent color needed to build a rich painterly surface.

Rick was born in NYC and raised in NY and Long Island. He currently divides his time between studios in New Jersey and the Catskills. Mills studied painting and art history as an undergrad and grad student at City College of New York. It was in High School in NYC that the art chairman and painter Sol Zaretsky first inspired Mills’ direction as an artist. Decades later they often exchange studio visits.

Driving a cab in NYC during the 70s and 80s he drew the quiet side of the city, culminating in paintings and many print editions co-published with Orion Editions. He became a master printer, taught at the Pratt Graphics Center and helped found and lead the Manhattan Graphics Center. Frequent trips to Maine led to a poetry print collaboration with poet Frederick Lowe. Mills was professor of art at LIU Post where he directed the printmaking program, the fine art and summer master art workshops.

Richard Kirk Mills will display his artwork at the Fishers’ Barn, venue #9.

See more of his work at: richardkirkmills.net