1969 - The Troubles: Alwin Gallery
This was Peter’s final one-man exhibition of the decade. It covered the Irish Rebellion, continuing the theme of war and revolt, but with a focus on less disturbing subject matter.
His portraiture of the principal figures of the revolt such as De Valera and Plunkett, amongst others, are intermingled with facets of the Dublin scene - the stuccoed terraced houses, wrought iron railings, British Tommies and Celtic crosses. As such, his works celebrate the city itself as well as the Irish protagonists, and their aura of melancholy with hints of violence.
Image: Joseph Plunkett and De Valera
His portraiture of the principal figures of the revolt such as De Valera and Plunkett, amongst others, are intermingled with facets of the Dublin scene - the stuccoed terraced houses, wrought iron railings, British Tommies and Celtic crosses. As such, his works celebrate the city itself as well as the Irish protagonists, and their aura of melancholy with hints of violence.
Image: Three Faces of Ireland
Interestingly his interest in this rebellion was sparked and enabled by the huge success of his last Alwin Gallery exhibition ‘Warlarks’. He used the proceeds from this sell-out exhibition to fund a trip to Ireland where he met Micháel MacLiammóir, who introduced him to veterans of the rebellion (1916 - 1923). This piqued Peter’s interest in the mood of the time in Ireland, and the faces behind ‘The Troubles’.
The use of colour in these works is remarkable and brings cohesion to the entire exhibition with the sustained use of blues, mauves and purple - the colour of mourning. This is a stark reminder of the sadness of this episode in Irish history, with so many lives lost.
In reaction to Peter Miller’s exhibition, art critic Max Wykes-Joyce, wrote in the International Herald Tribune, ‘…. he chronicles the spirit and sadness of men in revolt. But these works, as all good paintings should be, are of universal validity; indeed, I would go so far as to say that these are some of the best figurative works of the past decade; and welcome permanently on the London scene a major artist.'