Biography

Biography

"I think of Wes Mills as a Western American nomad. He moves every few years...the tools of his trade and a year's stack of finished drawings fit easily into a back pack..perpetually poised to negotiate new opportunities, he is a master of hanging out his shingle in each new location and creating a circle of activity. Within months of his 1991 arrival in Taos, New Mexico, he opened the Barber Shop Gallery. It was the first of two small one-room gallery spaces where he hung the work of other artists with great care and stunning proportion..." 

-MaLin Wilson, Santa Fe 1998

 

Born in Tucson, Arizona, in 1960, Wes Mills has taken his time finding his own feeling of home as he moves from town to town in the great American West. The artist first moved to Taos, New Mexico, in 1991, where he integrated himself quickly as an artist and gallery owner. However, he left shortly after moving on to California and again to Montana. Having only recently returned to the place where the artist first formed friendships with modern masters such as Agnes Martin, this is Mills’ first Taos gallery representation since the turn of the century. 

 

While the town of Taos may have noticed the absence of such an innovative and inspirational artist, who also worked hard to support the arts community, Mills’ career continued to flourish. His artwork is featured in galleries, publications, and museums across the United States and Europe. His drawings and prints have found homes in collections such as the Harwood Museum of Art, Taos; Museum of Modern Art, New York; Missoula Art Museum, Montana; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Fine Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico; Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. 

 

Partial List of Collections

Museum of Modern Art, NY

Whitney Museum of American Art, NY

Harwood Museum of Art, NM

Museum of Contemporary Art, CA

Museum of Fine Art, NM

Missoula Art Museum, MT

Minneapolis Institute of Art, MN

 

Selected Exhibitions

Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, NM

Richard Levy Gallery, Albuquerque, NM

Art Museum of Missoula, MT

Tamarind Institute, Albuquerque, NM

Galerie Albrecht, Munich, Germany

Rhona Hoffman Gallery, Chicago, IL

James Kelly Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM

Richard Levy Gallery, Albuquerque, NM

 

Wes Mills at 203 Fine Art

Please follow the links below to view online exhibition catalogues for Wes Mills organized by 203 Fine Art:

Wes Mills & Marc Baseman "drawings" | Exhibition Catalogue on ISSUU 2023

Wes Mills "My Hometown" | Exhibition Catalogue on ISSUU 2024

Works
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Untitled, 1995
    Graphite on paper
    6 ½ x 6 ½ inches
    16.5 x 16.5 cm
  • Wes Mills, #044-18, 2018
    Wes Mills
    #044-18, 2018
    Graphite and pastel on paper
    9 ¾ x 9 ¾ inches
    24.8 x 24.8 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    MR. 12, 1992
    Graphite and pigment on board
    14 x 15 ¾ inches
    35.6 x 40 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Bridge 0-086, 2000
    Graphite, ink, powdered pigment on paper
    6 ¾ x 6 ¾ inches
    17.1 x 17.1 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    No Title #9534, 1997
    graphite and pigment on paper
    6 x 6 inches
    15.2 x 15.2 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    No Title 341, 1996
    Graphite on gessoed board
    10 x 10 ¼ inches
    25.4 x 26 cm
  • Wes Mills, #045-18, 2018
    Wes Mills
    #045-18, 2018
    Graphite and pastel on paper
    9 ¾ x 9 ¾ inches
    24.8 x 24.8 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    No Title 467, 1998
    Graphite on paper
    5 ⅛ x 11 inches
    13 x 27.8 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    No Title 6066, 1999
    Graphite, ball point pen, and white powdered pigment on paper
    5 x 5 inches
    12.7 x 12.7 cm
  • Wes Mills drawing
    Wes Mills
    #047-18, 2018
    paint graphite and pastel on panel
    9 ¾ x 8 ⅜ inches
    24.8 x 21.3 cm
  • Wes Mills, #057-18, 2018
    Wes Mills
    #057-18, 2018
    Paint, graphite, pastel on board
    9 ¾ x 9 ¾ inches
    24.8 x 24.8 cm
  • Wes Mills, #153-18, 2018
    Wes Mills
    #153-18, 2018
    Paint, graphite, pastel on board
    9 ¾ x 8 ¾ inches
    24.8 x 22.2 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    034, 1999
    Ink, graphite on paper
    3 ½ x 3 ½ inches
    8.9 x 8.9 cm
    Framed: 14 ¼ x 14 ¼ inches
    Framed: 36.2 x 36.2 cm
  • Wes Mills drawing
    Wes Mills
    070-18, 2018
    graphite and pastel on panel
    11 ½ x 11 ½ inches
    29.2 x 29.2 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    BH10037, 1998
    graphite & pigment on paper
    7 x 7 inches
    17.8 x 17.8 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    BH9568, 1997
    graphite and pigment on paper
    6 ⅛ x 6 ⅝ inches
    15.6 x 16.8 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Golden Twig 063, 2023
    Graphite and gold paint on paper
    3 ¾ x 7 inches
    9.5 x 17.8 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Lybrary
    graphite and pigment on paper
    6 x 6 inches
    15.2 x 15.2 cm
  • Wes Mills, M06, 2024
    Wes Mills
    M06, 2024
    metal, plaster, wood, paint, wax, & epoxy
    14 x 4 x 4 inches
    35.6 x 10.2 x 10.2 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Memory Line, 1999
    graphite and pigment on paper
    7 x 7 inches
    17.8 x 17.8 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Mom Tried to Help Her, 1992
    graphite & colored pencil on gessoed board
    7 ⅜ x 9 inches
    18.7 x 22.9 cm
  • Wes Mills, No Title, 2018
    Wes Mills
    No Title, 2018
    Paint, graphite, pastel on board
    9 ⅞ x 9 ⅞ inches
    24.9 x 24.9 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    No Title 491, 2007
    graphite, ink, powdered pigment
    11 x 11 inches
    27.9 x 27.9 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Visible BH10361, 2001
    graphite & pigment on paper
    3 ½ x 3 ½ inches
    8.9 x 8.9 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    To Tease a Hummingbird - 011-11, 2011
    Graphite on paper
    10 x 10 inches
    25.4 x 25.4 cm
  • abstract drawing by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    Trampas Adobe 010, 2022
    Graphite and gold paint on paper
    8.3 x 10.2 cm
    Verso
    Sold
  • Wes Mills, M12, 2024
    Wes Mills
    M12, 2024
    metal, plaster, wood, paint, wax, & epoxy
    4 ¾ x 3 ½ x 4 ¼ inches
    12.1 x 8.9 x 10.8 cm
    Sold
  • Cactus Box by Wes Mills
    Wes Mills
    CB005 - Cacti Box, 2024
    Wood, paint, wax, nails
    5 ¼ x 5 x 2 inches
    13.3 x 12.7 x 5.1 cm
    Sold
Exhibitions