A Higher Self Within Us

By Doraté Muller
Vero Beach Branch (Florida)

I started painting a little over 40 years ago, and I’m loving it more and more each year. My first choice of medium was watercolor, but I have moved on to work in almost all media.

As a young woman, I studied textile and interior design, both of which influenced my work.

Oil painting
“Celebration” (30×30), oil painting by Doraté Muller

Painting with water media, oil, or pouring inks, I attempt to remain loose and free as I initiate my abstracts. It’s dangerous to become rigid in your work. I strive not for perfection but for integrity and sureness.

My goal is to say something meaningful with my work, and to say it well.

Starting with shapes of vivid colors, I add layers of transparent or opaque water media or oil glazing until I feel something emerging. I sometimes turn the paper or canvas to prevent becoming too attached to an image or idea at the outset.
Imparting balance, depth, and feeling into my paintings is critical. Images appear that I enhance and orchestrate as the feeling within dictates.

My inspiration arises from a personal belief that there is a higher self within us. I strive constantly to grow in touch with the one within myself and to let her express herself through my brush. My goal is to have people who enjoy and acquire my work to see and sense their own vision and feelings, and to develop a connection with it as deep as my own.

“Phoenix XII” (48×30),
oil painting by Doraté Muller, was featured on the Winter 2021 cover of The Pen Woman.

About the Artist

Dorate Muller paints in her studio.
Dorate Muller paints in her studio.

Doraté Muller was born in Germany, and also lived in the Philippines and China before becoming a U.S. citizen in 1960. She studied textile design in Dusseldorf and earned a degree in interior design from the Rochester Institute of Technology in the United States.

Her award-winning artwork is in private collections and commercial establishments throughout the United States and in several European countries.