Sheila Miles was born in the early 1950’s in Indianapolis into a family of six children. At an early age she decided to become an artist and when she was nine her mother gave her a book on the artist Gauguin. She then decided she wanted to be “that kind of an artist”. Sheila Miles believes a strong work of art transports the viewer into that world and it is like traveling to another country. Her goal when making art is to make a discovery about the world and/or herself. She says that the painting “When the Queen Goes Out, I like to Soak My Feet” is a metaphor for “whatever happens in your life try to keep a sense of humor.” Sheila Miles has lived and worked as an artist in Montana. She is currently in Oracle, Arizona. (No photo)

Click to visit Sheila’s website.

Lesson Overview: Students will write and illustrate their response using oil pastels. Students will be asked questions about the color wheel, color mixing, and complementary colors and the way that they are used in Sheila Miles’ work. This lesson will incorporate writing and art.

National Standards:

• VA:Cr2.1.4a: Explore and invent art-making techniques and approaches.
• VA:Re.8.1.4a: Interpret art by referring to contextual information and analyzing relevant subject matter, characteristics of form, and use of media.

Montana Standards:

• Anchor Standard #2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work. Apply research to art-making for the purpose of communicating about constructed environments.
• Anchor Standard #8: Construct meaningful interpretations of artistic works. analyze subject matter, form, and use of media in artwork.

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