John Tarrell Scott (June 30, 1940 – September 1, 2007) was an American sculptor, painter,

printmaker Printmaking is the process of creating artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand processed technique ...

collagist Collage (, from the , "to glue" or "to stick together") is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assembly of different forms, thus creating a new whole. (Compare with pasti ...

, and MacArthur Fellow. The works of Scott meld abstraction with contemporary techniques infused with references to traditional African arts and

Panafrican Pan-Africanism is a nationalist movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all indigenous peoples and diasporas of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atlantic slave trade, the Trans-Sa ...

themes.

Early life

Scott was born on a farm in Gentilly, a historic section of

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, Louisiana. When he was 7 years old, his family moved to the

Lower Ninth Ward The Lower Ninth Ward is a neighborhood in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. As the name implies, it is part of the 9th Ward of New Orleans. The Lower Ninth Ward is often thought of as the entire area within New Orleans downriver of the Ind ...

. His father was a chauffeur and restaurant cook. Scott said his art training began at home where he learned embroidery from his mother. Scott was raised

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Education and grants

After high school, he attended

Xavier University of Louisiana Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA) is a Private university, private Historically black colleges and universities, historically black Roman Catholic, Catholic university in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the only Catholic Historically black c ...

in New Orleans and received a Bachelor of Arts degree. He received his

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...

degree from

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County, although a small portion extends north into Clinton County. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 47,741. The city is located immediate ...

in 1965 where he studied under painter

Charles Pollock Charles Cecil Pollock (December 25, 1902 – May 8, 1988) was an American abstract painter and the eldest brother of artist Jackson Pollock. Biography Pollock was born on December 25, 1902, in Denver, Colorado. He was the eldest of five brothe ...

. Afterwards, he returned to Xavier where he taught for 40 years. In 1983, Scott received a grant to study under the internationally renown sculptor

George Rickey George Warren Rickey (June 6, 1907 – July 17, 2002) was an American kinetic sculptor known for geometric abstractions, often large-scale, engineered to move in response to air currents. Early life and education Rickey was born on June 6, ...

. In 1995, Scott received an

honorary An honorary position is one given as an honor, with no duties attached, and without payment. Other uses include: * Honorary Academy Award, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, United States * Honorary Aryan, a status in Nazi Germany ...

Doctor of Humanities from Michigan State University and a Doctor of Humanities from

Tulane University The Tulane University of Louisiana (commonly referred to as Tulane University) is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by a cohort of medical doctors, it b ...

in New Orleans in 1997. In 1992, he was awarded the exclusive

MacArthur Grant The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and ...

(also known as the "Genius Grant") from the

John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is a private foundation that makes grants and impact investments to support non-profit organizations in approximately 117 countries around the world. It has an endowment of $7.6 billion and ...

. He used the money to build a larger studio.

Works and commissions

Scott is best known for creating large

woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas that ...

prints and for his African-Caribbean-New Orleans-inspired

kinetic Kinetic (Ancient Greek: κίνησις “kinesis”, movement or to move) may refer to: * Kinetic theory, describing a gas as particles in random motion * Kinetic energy, the energy of an object that it possesses due to its motion Art and ente ...

sculptures. In 2005, he was the subject of a major

retrospective A retrospective (from Latin ', "look back"), generally, is a look back at events that took place, or works that were produced, in the past. As a noun, ''retrospective'' has specific meanings in software development, popular culture, and the arts. ...

exhibit at the

New Orleans Museum of Art The New Orleans Museum of Art (or NOMA) is the oldest art museum, fine arts museum in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, New Orleans. It is situated within City Park (New Orleans), City Park, a short distance from the intersection of Carrollton ...

entitled "Circle Dance: The Art of John T. Scott." Scott was also commissioned to create several pieces that are placed throughout the City of New Orleans. These public works in New Orleans include ''Spirit Gates'' at the New Orleans Museum of Art and ''Spirit House'' at DeSaix Circle (at St. Bernard and

Gentilly Boulevard Gentilly may refer to: France * Gentilly, Val-de-Marne, a ''commune'' of the Val-de-Marne ''département'' Canada * Gentilly, Quebec, a suburb of the city of Bécancour * Gentilly Nuclear Generating Station, a former nuclear power station in ...

s) in the Seventh Ward and ''River Spirit'' at

Woldenberg Park Woldenberg Park is a park in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was created in the late 1980s on land that had been occupied by old wharves and warehouses along the Mississippi Riverfront, in the upper French Quarter, first opening as a park in October ...

along the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

near the

Port of New Orleans The Port of New Orleans is a significant transport hub located in Louisiana, United States. It serves as an embarkation point for cruise passengers and Louisiana’s sole international container port. The port generates $100 million in revenue a ...

. Scott had been quoted as saying that he tried to capture the musicality of New Orleans in the colors and rhythms of his sculptures.

Themes

Scott's work frequently displayed themes related to African-American life, particularly the rich Afro-Caribbean culture and musical heritage of New Orleans. One of the best examples of this style is his sculpture called ''Ocean Song" located in

Woldenberg Park (New Orleans) Woldenberg Park is a park in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was created in the late 1980s on land that had been occupied by old wharves and warehouses along the Mississippi Riverfront, in the upper French Quarter, first opening as a park in October ...

. Scott said the rings at the top of the sculpture represented circle dances performed by slaves who frequented

Congo Square Congo Square () is an open space, now within Louis Armstrong Park, which is located in the Tremé neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana, just across Rampart Street north of the French Quarter. The square is famous for its influence on the ...

. He is also known for his use of divergent materials in constructing his art, such as cast bronze, thin brass strips of wire and bent hardwood to create provocative sculptures.

Collections

John T. Scott’s works are exhibited in several permanent collections including: * The

Ogden Museum of Southern Art The Ogden Museum of Southern Art is a museum dedicated to art by artists from the southern United States in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was established in 1999. The building The Ogden museum is located in the Warehouse Arts District of downtown ...

(New Orleans) * The

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

Museum of Art in the

Shaw Center for the Arts The Shaw Center for the Arts is a 125,000 square foot (12,000 m²) performing art venue, fine arts museum, and education center located at 100 Lafayette Street in downtown Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It opened in 2005. The Center includes the LSU Mu ...

(

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

) * The

Amistad Research Center The Amistad Research Center (ARC) is an independent archives and manuscripts repository in the United States that specializes in the history of African Americans and ethnic minorities. It is one of the first institutions of its kind in the United ...

Collection at

(New Orleans) * The Blanche and Norman C. Francis Collection at

(New Orleans) *

Loyola University Loyola University is one of several Jesuit Universities named for St. Ignatius of Loyola. Loyola University may refer to: Democratic Republic of the Congo *Loyola University of Congo, Kinshasa, Congo Spain * Loyola University Andalusia, Sevilla ...

(New Orleans) * The Museum of Fine Arts (Houston, Texas) * The

Scripps College Scripps College is a private liberal arts women's college in Claremont, California. It was founded as a member of the Claremont Colleges in 1926, a year after the consortium's formation. Journalist and philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps pr ...

(

Claremont, California Claremont () is a suburban city in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States, east of Los Angeles. It lies in the Pomona Valley at the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census it had ...

) * The

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

(Washington D.C

*

Fisk University Fisk University is a Private university, private Historically black colleges and universities, historically black Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus i ...

(

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

) *

Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities is a nonprofit organization dedicated to furthering the education of residents of the state of Louisiana. In its mission, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities pledges to provide access to and pro ...

(New Orleans) *

Baltimore Museum of Art The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) in Baltimore, Maryland, is an art museum that was founded in 1914. The BMA's collection of 95,000 objects encompasses more than 1,000 works by Henri Matisse anchored by the Cone Collection of modern art, ...

(Baltimore, MD)

Death

Scott fled New Orleans just before

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

made landfall in August 2005 and settled in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, Texas. He died at Methodist Hospital in Houston after receiving two double-lung transplants and his long struggle with pulmonary fibrosis. An exhibition called "Beyond Black" featuring

Ed Clark Edward E. Clark (born May 4, 1930) is an American lawyer and politician who ran for governor of California in 1978, and for president of the United States as the nominee of the Libertarian Party in the 1980 presidential election. Background C ...

, Eugene J. Martin and John T. Scott opened at the LSU Museum of Art,

, Baton Rouge, LA, on January 28 – May 8, 2011. The McKenna Museum of African-American Art in New Orleans hosted a tribute exhibition in fall 2014 as a Prospect.3+ satellite exhibition.

References

External links

Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities
* ttp://blog.nola.com/times-picayune/2007/09/renowned_no_artist_john_t_scot.html Renowned N.O. artist John T. Scott dead at 67
John T. Scott by John R. Kemp

* ttp://www.nola.com/arts/index.ssf/2009/11/view_a_video_of_john_t_scotts.html John T. Scott's recovered art: See video By Doug MacCash,The Times-Picayunebr>Press of John T. Scott at the Arthur Roger Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, John T. Xavier University of Louisiana faculty 1940 births 2007 deaths 20th-century American painters American male painters 21st-century American painters Artists from Louisiana MacArthur Fellows African-American sculptors African-American Catholics 20th-century African-American painters 21st-century African-American artists 20th-century American male artists