Jul 1

Julie Miller Torres

Julie Miller Torres is a mixed media artist and printmaker who has exhibited throughout the United States and internationally in France. She is represented by Maune Contemporary in Atlanta, Georgia and her works remain in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Savannah College of Art & Design, The Ritz Carlton, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Delta Airlines, JW Marriott, as well as other collectors. Julie’s work has been featured in several Southern publications including The Atlanta Journal Constitution, The Atlantan, The Florida Bar News, and Birmingham Magazine. Notable public works include a six-story permanent art installation at Hotel Indigo in Savannah, Georgia.

With a background in Law, Julie sometimes incorporates various legal documents into her art such as articles from both state and federal constitutions in the form of slices of paper containing texts. Julies’ portraits usually portray historically significant women such as supreme court justices Sandra Day O’Conner, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, abolitionists such as Harriet Tubman, and legendary country singer Dolly Parton. She also creates representations of several state flags emanating from a collage of shredded documents as well as purely abstract works made with gold leaf and silkscreen printing.

The commonality within the art contains intricate details of small strips of shredded paper meticulously combined to create a holistic composition, sometimes followed by a print stamped onto the surface. Upon closer inspection the viewer can view relevant texts directly pertaining to the subject matter within the mixed media piece. Creating such sociological context in regards to relating the law to the individual represented enhances the significance of the documents by turning them into works of art with a historical conduit. Julie’s abstract printmaking works appear almost like viewing a distant landscape out of a window with blinds pulled down but left open for gaps, with the gold leaf containing the appearance of light. The smooth interaction between streaks of vertical ink followed by horizontal ‘blinds’ creates an aesthetically pleasing cross hatching effect. The horizontal white ink acts as a subduing agent for the bold contrast of underlying broad ink strokes.

Imagine (pictured above) remains one of Julie’s most unusual pieces in regards to the abstention of color, using only black and white. Crafted from international law treatise documents, the paper becomes crocheted into an ornamental frame around the central composition. The design lays out to tile-like patterns starting from the circumference of the circle leading into the core. At the center of the circle contains the word “imagine”, a concept echoing the viewer to respect international conventions and imagining a world where the rule of law governs in universal solidarity. The circle symbolizes international cooperation and esteem towards the law as a central pillar and tenant.

Julie Miller Torres creates dynamic, thought-provoking works which delve into the history of the United States. Her works are conduits for respect of representations of the law as well as historical documents and relics within themselves. The variety of Julie’s portfolio from gold leaf abstractions to portraiture and woven sociological designs communicates on behalf of an artist who wishes to inspire the viewer with conceptual relevance as well as on the principles of contemporary aesthetics. Julie’s works remain intellectual, refined, and beautiful as an interpretation on the contemporary, historical, and cultural foundations of the United States.