Artist Statement
Unlike many artists, who know from childhood that they are in love with drawing and painting, I began to paint in middle age, and almost by accident. After a 20-year career in corporate pension plan administration, I went back to school to get a degree in fashion design. Wanting to learn to draw and paint so I could execute some fabric designs, I started to take art lessons.
The fashion and textile design career never materialized, but those art lessons became the highlight of my week. Fabric fell by the wayside, and now my main love is portraiture. To me, there is nothing more fascinating than the individuality and personality of the human face. I love the challenge of creating a likeness, hopefully capturing not just the surface features, but something of the person’s inner essence as well.
I also love to paint “small things.” There is so much beauty around us, and painting gives me eyes to see the little miracles of nature—mushrooms, tiny flowers, leaf formations—that I might otherwise miss.
Donna Mills holds a BA in Fashion and Textile Design from California State University, Los Angeles, and garment construction has always been a primary form of creative expression for her. As part of her study of textile design, Donna began to paint about 20 years ago. In 2017, she moved from southern California to Massachusetts and joined the Andovers Artists Guild. Inspired by the new environment and the natural beauty of New England, she began to spend more creative time in her studio, and has shown and sold many of her pieces. While Donna’s style is representational, she prefers “painterly” to photorealistic. You can view her work at www.donnamillsart.com/gallery. In addition to creating paintings and garments, Donna is a certified hand analyst and creativity coach. She provides a safe space for her clients to explore their purpose and work through their creative blocks. To learn more about that aspect of her work, visit www.printsonpurpose.com.
Display Case – Reference Area – Camera Collection (1940s-1990s) – Virginia Guazzaloca
I’ve been interested in photography ever since I was a little girl. My grandmother and aunt got me my very first camera, a little Kodak point and shoot that I brought everywhere with me. In high school, I took my very first photography class, and fell in love with the dark room, developing and printing my own film. When I started getting more serious about photography, and started taking classes in college, my grandfather gave me his old Canon AE-1. Photography ended up being a way for my grandfather and I to connect, something we were never really able to do before. He told me stories about how he would grind his own glass for his enlarger, about developing his film and printing his own photos. He even once mentioned to me that his camera collection would be mine when he passed away. Sadly, he passed away last year. Our conversations about photography are some of my best memories of him, and I’m so glad I now have his camera collection to help me remember him.