In the Path of Totality 2017 | Watercolor on paper | 14" x 10"

February 22, 2017

Expanding this blog to include artwork other than my own has been a goal all along, and now that it's out of the first year of its existence, the time is right. It seemed only natural that the first artist to feature would be Scott Winterrowd, a close friend for more than 20 years and a significant influence on my own work. Scott currently is the Director of Education at the Meadows Museum in Dallas, with previous roles at the Getty Center and at the Dallas Museum of Art. His wealth of knowledge about art and his ability to communicate ideas and information in an accessible way is one of the many things I love about him. I consider it a special privilege when I get to have him as a personal tour guide in an art museum. Beyond that, he's one of the most prolific painters I know, and yet somehow is almost brutally critical of his self-perceived low output. The sheer volume of paintings he has produced translates to a honing of his skills that I think is under appreciated, perhaps due to the quietness of his work.

In delicate yet decisive watercolors, he translates nature, science, and human impact onto paper in a way that does not scream for attention. There is no need to. There is a classic, timeless feel to his work, as though his complete immersion into art history has simply seeped out into his paintings. And there is an unquestionable beauty to them, but sometimes in this world and especially in the art world, beauty is viewed with suspicion or even derision. It's not always glaringly obvious that there is subtext in the way that we've all become accustomed to: no poster-worthy politics, no self-consciously branded immersive spaces perfect for Instagram selfies, no clear intent to try to promote a point of view. Reflecting and challenging the conventions of the age is a long-standing artistic tradition, but in our current social climate where showmanship, bravado, personal branding, and click-bait content rule the day, we've become desensitized to voices that are more subtly expressed, especially when they are expressed in ways that on the surface feel traditional. But amid all of the noise the kind of quiet restraint and integrity that Scott demonstrates with his work feels not only refreshing but defiant.

Underneath the calm veneer, there is meaty substance. A landscape is never simply a landscape. When Scott turns his eye towards the natural world though a mountain-top vista or the detailed curves of a succulent, his act of reverence remind us of what we are losing and what we are selling for short-term profit and convenience. His paintings of wildfires are a straightforward depiction of how we put ourselves in danger through unchecked development and climate change. Watercolors of mushroom clouds have the feel of traditional Japanese ink paintings in a direct refusal to forget our past actions and their cost in human lives. These are suddenly all the more relevant as the rhetoric of man-baby world leaders escalates the actual threat of nuclear conflict. But there are less worrisome themes in the work too, even humor. Scott takes us on a tour of our world and the solar system in vintage postcard-like paintings, sending us "Greetings from..." various locations, whether it's Dallas, Pluto, or the entire cosmos. Through pigment and water, he documents his travels to man-made marvels such as the Mosque-Cordoba in Spain, ever the ambassador for art and culture. A series of eclipse paintings compulsively poured out of him after he witnessed the 2017 solar eclipse from the path of totality, echoing the excitement and joy felt by millions of people. As the world spirals through rapid change around all of us, Scott stays true to the things he loves and to the craft of painting itself, as if he's reminding us not to lose sight of those things, both natural and man-made, that we should be proud of and that we should protect and nurture. And this is where the power of beauty returns. I have witnessed countless people feel moved by his work. "Beauty of whatever kind, in its supreme development, invariably excites the sensitive soul to tears," as Edgar Allan Poe said. Whether actual tears are involved or not, we humans rely more on feelings for motivation than on objective logic most of the time. To move someone through beauty is to inspire them to care.

To see more of Scott's work, follow him on Facebook and Instagram. You can also read more about him in my post about my plein air work.

All content is created as an extension of my practice and artistic influences. Opinions are my own.

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Check out my interview on the podcast Who Are These People? to hear more about my work and how Scott was influential in my reconnection to making art. There's also this short teaser where I talk about him a bit more.

More Featured Artists:

Featured artist: The Angry Cloud  A few weeks ago I went to an artist's talk at DORF, a gallery space that sprouted last Spring in the garage of Austin-based artists and married couple Sara Vanderbeek and Eric Manche in a quiet, south Austin neighborhood. The second show in the space featured a local street artist known as The Angry Cloud... See More

Featured artist: Tammie Rubin  A few delicate tendrils tip a porcelain cone askew, creating an underneath place, unreachable and mysterious... See More

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