Joshua Miles ARSMA

Statement

Joshua Miles was born in the Western Cape in South Africa in 1967. After early schooling in Swellendam he completed high school in the northern suburbs of Cape Town. He then went on to study at the Michaelis School of Fine Art at the University of Cape Town where he received the Michaelis prize for best student in his final year.

Joshua is one of those rare artists who has managed to make a living solely from his art. He spent many years painting with oils on canvas but his passion has always been with reduction block printmaking. His influences in printmaking started at a young age watching his aunt Elsa Miles, artist and art historian, doing woodcuts and then later studying under Cecil Scotness at UCT.

Joshua is a landscape artist and is inspired by the play of light on the landscape which leads him to explore his local areas. He is always hunting for qualities of light that evoke emotion, this is often the softer light that brings out the in-between tones and greys most would miss. He is also inspired by the impressionists style of loose mark making and by the Japanese tradition of printmaking both of which are evident in his work.

After finishing at UCT Joshua moved to Hermanus where he met his Scottish wife Angela. They have been married more than 20 years and they have over the years lived and worked between South Africa and Scotland. They work together in the business of selling Joshua's art.