(American born England, 1818 - 1893)
Sailboats in a Harbor
Oil on board 7 1/2 x 10 inches
Signed and dated at lower right: “W.R.Miller/1870”
Born in Staindrop, County Durham, England, William Rickarby Miller probably learned to paint from his father, the artist Joseph Miller (dates unknown). William R. Miller immigrated to the United States in 1844 and, after a brief stay in Buffalo, settled in New York City and painted portraits. He traveled extensively throughout the Northeast painting numerous watercolors of the landscape. Miller also painted still-life subjects and worked as an illustrator for books and magazines. Beginning in 1873 he was mainly occupied in producing pen and ink sketches for a book on the American landscape called “A Thousand Gems” that never came to fruition. Miller exhibited at the National Academy of Design from 1853 to 1876, the Brooklyn Art Association from 1868 to 1882, and at the American Art-Union. He was also a member of the Woodstock Art Association. Miller died in the Bronx.
About the Artist
(American born England, 1818 - 1893)
Born in Staindrop, County Durham, England, and taught to paint by his father, Joseph, William Rickarby Miller immigrated to the United States by 1845 and settled in New York City after a brief stay in Buffalo, New York. Although he painted portraits when he needed the work, he is best known for his landscapes, especially in watercolor. Miller also worked as an illustrator for such publications as Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, Gleasons’s Pictorial Drawing-Room Companion, and The New York Illustrated News. Miller exhibited at the National Academy of Design in New York from 1861 to 1876. His works are in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the New-York Historical Society in New York.
