Internationally acclaimed artist and writer Harland Miller returns to York Art Gallery this March to present ‘XXX’, a new exhibition showcasing paintings and works on paper from his renowned ‘Letter Paintings’ series.

Inspired by his upbringing in 1970s Yorkshire and an itinerant lifestyle in New York, New Orleans, Berlin and Paris during the 1980s and ’90s, Miller creates colourful and graphically vernacular works that convey his love of popular language and attest to his enduring engagement with its narrative, aural and typographical possibilities.

The ‘Letter Paintings’ present overlaid letter forms as their image, with a neutral band at the bottom in the form of a ‘title’ alongside Miller’s own name as their ‘author’. By isolating, overlaying and reuniting individual letters, the artist creates a sense of depth in the image and encourages contemplation. Vibrant, saturated colour palettes are deployed in standout works such as ‘XXX’, ‘Boss’ and his first hard-edged diptych, ‘Far Out’. Preparatory drawings on graph paper allow for fascinating insights into the structural composition that informs Miller’s large-scale, finished paintings.