Story / Inspiration

“Arethusa” is named for the water nymph in Greek mythology who was transformed to escape pursuit and found refuge as living water.

In this work, Miller paints an intimate swim lesson: an adult guiding a child just below the surface. You see trust and surrender — the child’s face relaxed, eyes closed, held in safety — and you see vigilance in the adult’s gaze, scanning through the blue. The water becomes both shield and threshold.

The myth and the moment mirror each other: a body in danger becomes a body in water, then becomes water itself. This is protection as transformation.

Themes: protection, femininity, survival, becoming.

Visual Language / Technique

Miller layers transparent watercolor washes with controlled colored-pencil drawing and touches of gouache. The result is hyper-observed skin and hair against water that’s constantly breaking apart into light.

Key details to notice:

• Refraction: faces warped and reframed by the moving surface
• The red swimsuit and strap acting like a visual anchor in all the shifting blues
• Micro-bubbles and ripples rendered almost like calligraphy
• Heat of skin tones under cool pool light

This is contemporary realism, but it’s not static. The brushwork in the water borders on abstraction — teal, gold, and ultramarine currents — while the figures are tender and precise.

This lets the piece sit beautifully in both figurative collections and modern impressionist collections.

M.S. Miller is a Las Vegas–based contemporary artist whose work blends impressionism, realism, and mixed media to celebrate resilience, transcendence, and natural beauty. Raised in the Catskills and inspired by her life across nine states, Miller creates oil pastel and watercolor artworks that capture the luminosity of desert blooms, landscapes, and mythic narratives. Her art has received international recognition, including a Talent Award in Teravarna’s FLOWER competition (2025). Through 13 Lemons Artwork Gallery, she offers originals and limited-edition prints for collectors, designers, and art lovers seeking meaningful works that enrich interiors with both beauty and story.

Delivery Time: Shipments typically take 7 to 10 business days.

Packaging: Ships in a dent-resistant tube.

Shipping Costs: Included in the price for shipping to addresses within the USA. For more information regarding shipping, please refer to our shipping policy.

Returns: We want you to love your artwork — and we pack and ship each piece with care. If something’s not right, we’ll work with you to make it right. Please see our return policy for details.