Hillary Scott is an award winning oil painter from Groveland, Massachusetts. Her work will be shown at the Firehouse Gallery January 6-31.
She earned her BFA from UMass Lowell (2002) where she was primarily trained as a children’s book illustrator under the direction of the late narrative painter, Brenda Atwood Pinardi.
Since graduating Hillary spent many years creating figurative oil paintings and working as an illustrator. She illustrated her first children’s book “The Good Guy Lullaby” which was published in April 2014. Hillary has been studying with landscape artist Karen Blackwood and exploring a new creative direction which is landscape painting.
Since she began exhibiting her oil paintings a few years ago she has been accepted into numerous juried shows and won several awards. Hillary is a member of the Newburyport Art Association and Oil Painters of America. You can view more of work on her website: www.hillaryscottstudios.com
Artist Statement:
“For about 12 years, my creative journey primarily consisted of children’s book illustration and figurative paintings. However, last year I took a plein air workshop and immediately fell in love with painting the landscape. Fortunately, local landscapes happen to be the marshes, woodlands, and skylines of the New England coast. This past year I have created a body of work depicting beautiful locations from Cape Cod to Plum Island. I am fascinated by the effects of light on objects and water and the challenge of capturing this accurately. Doing this convincingly has required me to change my entire approach to painting from the one I have used as an illustrator for much of my career. I now rely less on photographs and more on direct observation. This is the single most important factor whether my painting successfully conveys to the viewer a specific feeling or mood. A pretty scene or exquisitely rendered detail alone is not sufficient; rather, my goal is to elicit a visceral reaction. When this happens I have done my job well. Thus I believe in ‘saying more by painting less.’ Less in the way of painstaking detail allows my viewer to fill in the blanks, interpret the scene for himself, and gain a feeling for the painting.”
(Painting shown, “The Pink House” )