Studio painting inspired by sketches and photos on the Kiabab trail midway down the Grand Canyon, where a waterfall springs from the cliffs. Painted in a classical style, reminiscent of the earliest landscape painting of the American southwest.

Ian Scott

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My artwork is inspired by a lifetime of exploring the outdoors, as well as the philosophies and techniques of the 19th century Hudson River School of artists, particularly those who painted the American West. I left the freedom of university art education to spend several years learning the rigors of Classical and Naturalist techniques in two Art Renewal Center Ateliers in Utah. Today, the focus of my work is on restoring the classical landscape movement, with a modern insight on preservation ethics and reverence for wild spaces. More often than not my creative process involves skiing, hiking,kayaking, or biking to locations across the west, where I create sketches and small paintings on location. In the studio, these plein air studies serve as the primary inspiration, rather than photographs, for larger paintings. My goal is not to create a perfect likeness, but rather to capture the unique spirit and emotion of a place.