“In this piece I explore the idea that portraiture is not simply the likeness of a person. A portrait is of an individual, but that individual is also an object to be posed, lit, clothed, and directed. It is impossible for the artist to keep their own choices and agenda out of the likeness. So how "true" is any portrait, including self-portraits? Does it matter? The sunflower theme comes from Van Gogh, and provided a framework for costume and set ideas.” – Gregory Scott

Gregory Scott received his bachelor's degree from the IIT Institute of Design in Chicago in 1979. Creating works that blur the distinction between painting, photography, and video, he returned to graduate school at the age of 49 to strengthen his knowledge of art history and video-making. In 2008 he received his Master of Fine Art from Indiana University.

Scott’s recent mixed media work combines traditional oil painting on panel with flat screen HD video and archival digital printing, creating layer upon layer of illusion with genuine wit and humour. As well as exploring (and confounding) our assumptions about the individual media of painting, photography and video, his works also comment upon the human condition: humour, play, desire, identity, loneliness, and melancholy. Throughout his works he quotes from artists ranging from 19th century painters like Manet to contemporary names like Banksy.

Artist Statement:

“I am a painter and a photographer. My early paintings were often based on my photographs. So, the two mediums have always been connected for me. I recently began to produce figure paintings with tightly cropped compositions resulting in canvases of people missing various parts of their anatomy - heads, legs, arms. A quick “what if” study photo of myself filling in the missing body parts in these paintings was the “a-ha” moment that led to my Impositions work. These images explore different approaches for imposing paintings within photographic images.

Some of the artistic issues I am exploring include dimensional perception as viewed in a painting vs. a photograph; the demarcations between photography and painting; perceptions of photographic truth; and introducing the artist's hand and imagination into the world of the literal photograph. What really drives my creative process, however, is the desire to evoke intriguing emotional narratives within beautiful photographs. The work explores humor, play, desire, loneliness, and melancholy. In most cases the titles are an integral part of the communication and have been carefully considered to add meaning without constricting interpretation. Guiding all of this is my desire to make this work accessible to all audiences.