The value of the past, for an artist, can never be understated. For Alexander Millar, this value underscores both his artwork and his outlook. Millar’s work both celebrates and reinvents the past, inspired by the fascinating time he grew up in, a unique world filled with unique characters…
Millar has spoken about his childhood in a low-income area of Scotland, commenting that it seemed more like the 1940’s than the 1960’s. Aware even then of the glimpses of the past that surrounded his childhood, Millar spent time observing the beauty and oddities of the world around him. He remembers seeing the people he passed every day as characters; dancers in a strange ballet that consisted of men wobbling on bicycles and old women gossiping on street corners. And, when buying Alexander Millar artworks, collectors can find themselves imagining their own role in the imagined scenes.
Inspired by these scenes, Millar’s most famous artworks are his character-based pieces. His most instantly recognisable works feature his classic “Gadgie” in a suit and flat cap… usually slumping home from work with the intention of rewarding himself with a pint on the way. It’s a deeply personal reflection of everyday life for Millar, and one that instantly resonates with anyone who grew up in a town or time similar to his own. However, despite the very specific geography of the Gadgie – and of Millar’s other favourite characters, like his delightfully “missile-shaped” women in bright tartan headscarves – Millar’s work has resonated with collectors around the world, not just with those who remember Gadgies from their own childhoods in Scotland or Northern England.