Mary Scott
Encyclopedia
Mary Scott is a Canadian artist based in Calgary
who has worked with painting, fibre, new media
and computer programming in her art practice.
Scott has participated in a variety of group exhibitions including She Writes in White Ink, (1985) at the Walter Phillips Gallery
, Banff; Songs of Experience, (1986), National Gallery of Canada
, Ottawa; Active Surplus, (1987), Power Plant, Toronto; and The Body and Society, (1988) at the Embassy Cultural House, London, Ontario. Her solo exhibitions include shows at The Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Banff (1985); the Dunlop Gallery, Regina (1986); and Gallery 1.1.1., Winnipeg (1987). She was a co-founder in 1985 of the Stride Gallery in Calgary.
Scott is quoted as saying "I have no interest in a monologue with respect to my work. I'm very interested in dialogue, in discourse and the polyvocal. The monologue which is plunked on the wall or plunked on the floor is very unsatisfactory to me."
Scott's work embraces text as a central player in its performance. One half of her installation, "Hearing Voices", drapes words constructed from oil paint over her personal book collection. The text for this piece comes from Scott's first novel, which was inspired by the writings of Gertrude Stein
. This text is a product of "smashing", according to Scott. "I did this a lot in the late ’70s, where I would go in and take from one or two writers and 'smash' [their work] together." Scott cites Stein as a continuous influence on her practice, and says Stein's writing is also responsible for her foray into aural territory. "My practice is painting, but a lot (of my work) has never had a dot of paint on it. People will say, ‘Oh my god, how can you call this painting? It doesn't have paint on it?’ And I'll say, ‘What do you think it's talking to?’ It's talking to that discourse in history and is arguing with that history."
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
who has worked with painting, fibre, new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
and computer programming in her art practice.
Scott has participated in a variety of group exhibitions including She Writes in White Ink, (1985) at the Walter Phillips Gallery
Walter Phillips Gallery
Walter Phillips Gallery was established in 1976 in Banff, Alberta, as a part of the Banff Centre in Banff National Park. Walter J. Phillips was a printmaker and painter, from the 1930s to the 1950s, who played a seminal role in the development of the visual arts program in The Banff School of...
, Banff; Songs of Experience, (1986), National Gallery of Canada
National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada , located in the capital city Ottawa, Ontario, is one of Canada's premier art galleries.The Gallery is now housed in a glass and granite building on Sussex Drive with a notable view of the Canadian Parliament buildings on Parliament Hill. The acclaimed structure was...
, Ottawa; Active Surplus, (1987), Power Plant, Toronto; and The Body and Society, (1988) at the Embassy Cultural House, London, Ontario. Her solo exhibitions include shows at The Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Banff (1985); the Dunlop Gallery, Regina (1986); and Gallery 1.1.1., Winnipeg (1987). She was a co-founder in 1985 of the Stride Gallery in Calgary.
Scott is quoted as saying "I have no interest in a monologue with respect to my work. I'm very interested in dialogue, in discourse and the polyvocal. The monologue which is plunked on the wall or plunked on the floor is very unsatisfactory to me."
Scott's work embraces text as a central player in its performance. One half of her installation, "Hearing Voices", drapes words constructed from oil paint over her personal book collection. The text for this piece comes from Scott's first novel, which was inspired by the writings of Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
. This text is a product of "smashing", according to Scott. "I did this a lot in the late ’70s, where I would go in and take from one or two writers and 'smash' [their work] together." Scott cites Stein as a continuous influence on her practice, and says Stein's writing is also responsible for her foray into aural territory. "My practice is painting, but a lot (of my work) has never had a dot of paint on it. People will say, ‘Oh my god, how can you call this painting? It doesn't have paint on it?’ And I'll say, ‘What do you think it's talking to?’ It's talking to that discourse in history and is arguing with that history."