Fascinated by both the myth and the grandeur of Nature, Michael Scott often combines these two elements in his works. Traveling to the Pacific Northwest or on Monhegan Island, Maine, Scott composes small sketches on site which, in the studio, he develops into amazingly large panoramic views. He views these as “document” paintings. They “document” a phase in history in much the same manner as did Fredrick Church but the outlook is different. I don't completely understand the paintings when

start them and I allow a kind of dialogue to happen with the fulfillment of the scene occurring through the process of making the painting. I go out and work directly with “feelings”. For Scott the result is a series of paintings that reconfirm the 19th-century concept of Nature's association with God - yet his paintings are more than that. They are “reminder” paintings bringing attention to the processes of Nature which are endangered by Man. As is obvious in such works, Scott's paintings are contemplative narratives.

By Fredrick R. Brandt
Curator of Contemporary Art
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, VA.