Sleepy Hollow Artist: Hillary Miller (Plus Special Guest Kelly Tuggle and Zen Aardvark)

One of the many great aspects about living in Carbon Canyon and in the Sleepy Hollow community in particular is the tremendous variety of people who live here.

For many, the special attributes of the canyon are deeply meaningful and this is represented by the many artists who not only reside in the area, but are inspired by and responsive to our canyon.

Another Sleepy Hollow neighbor who expresses this sense of meaning in Carbon Canyon in her work is artist Hillary Miller.  She and her husband Dave, a mechanical engineering professor at Cal Poly Pomona, have lived in Sleepy Hollow for some thirty years and raised their two sons here.

Hillary studied at Cal State Fullerton, where she received her bachelor's degree in art, with emphases in drawing, painting and illustration. in 1984, followed four years later with her master's in drawing and painting.

Most of her work has been in oil, watercolor and pastel, though for the last fifteen years or so she has taken up silk painting, specifically with shawls, banners, scarves and tallitot, the latter being Jewish prayer scarves.

In addition to the tallitot, Hillary's expressions in Judaica include the ketubot, the Jewish marriage contract, and she indicates that her main works also include "landscapes, still lifes, the occasional portrait."

At the Miller home, Hillary has a remarkable studio that she and her husband added to their home, within several years of buying their beautiful property.  She not only works in the media mentioned above, but also has teamed up with her next-door neighbor,  Kelly Tuggle, who does her own work as well, in a cooperative venture they call Zen Aardvark.

Painting and decoration on furniture and found objects, home and garden pieces jewelry and other works are part of the Zen Aardvark enterprise and include many whimsical and remarkable productions described as "colorful, playful, earthy, zen-like."

A couple of weeks ago, Hillary hosted an Open Studio Holiday Sale to showcase her works, as well as those by Kelly and by the pair as Zen Aardvark.

It was not only a chance to view some remarkable works of art, but to purchase some as holiday gifts (to others as well as to self!), enjoy time chatting with Hillary and Kelly, not to mention friends and neighbors, and to see the studio.

The photos here show some of what was displayed and available--except the last image, which was an impromptu drawing that day by her father!

For more on Hillary and Zan Aardvark, check out Hillary's blog here and the Zen Aardvark Facebook page here.