Roof MonstersScott Miller

On a home on Hadley Avenue live over 100 monsters, but Scott Miller doesn’t mind them. He sees them as creatures with lives of their own and he’s happy to live with them on his roof. These monsters are ceramic and whimsical in their colors and fashion. Some are just a few inches tall, while others are nearly 3ft. There are parents with children, some seem to congregate in groups and others are loners, yet Scott still sees them all as one cohesive work.

Scott Miller was born in Carmel, California but grew up in nearby Aptos. He got a BFA in painting from San Jose State and an MFA in painting from Claremont Graduate School. While studying painting at San Jose State, Scott became obsessed with ceramics and first began creating ceramic monsters. After graduation, he worked for many years as an illustrator and technical writer, but his passion for ceramics and the imaginative stayed with him. 

As a child, Scott had an interest in outsider art after being gifted the book, Fantasy Worlds by John Maizel, and seeing many of the artist environments in France. This inspired a trip for him in 2007, where he would visit and document several sites across France (many of his photos from this trip are featured on SPACES). This trip had a lasting impact on Scott, and when adding a second floor addition to his home years later, he noticed an alcove on his new roof that was perfect for a monster. 

That one monster turned into a few more monsters — and Scott told himself he would stop at 100 — but he is currently at about 120 and has no intention of quitting now. Scott produces them all from his personal kiln and each monster can take between five minutes and four hours to sculpt, depending on the size and complexity of the monster. These monsters are very expressive, which is why all of them are adorned with colorful clothes, accessories, and gadgets. Larger monsters are held to the roof using thin nylon ropes looped through their back and secured to the deck in the backyard, while smaller ones are secured by wires or glued to a rubber mat and placed on the roof, and if they fall, they safely land in the garden below. 

These monsters are admired by neighbors, people passing by as they visit the nearby San Jose Rose Garden, and families dropping kids off at the elementary school across the street. That’s why all the monsters face the street. As much as people like to look at them, they like to look at people, too. 

– Narrative by Leah Zuberer (SPACES intern), 2025

Sources:

• www.waxmoth.com
• Interview with artist Scott Miller, August 2025

Ceramic on roof

645 Hadley Ave
San Jose, California, 95126 us
Latitude/Longitude: 37.3299707 / -121.9266151

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