Artist Statement:
Death is all around us, and I believe it should be embraced rather than feared. In my art, I enjoy exploring this unavoidable aspect of human existence using my ability to depict bodies, hands, and skulls. My goal is to present viewers with a sense of beauty and symmetry within themes that so often feel unsettling or uncomfortable. As a self-taught artist with watercolor, I use a similar style to how I painted with acrylics in order to create texture and strong tones. My influences range from classical painters such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau and Caravaggio, surrealists Zdzisław Beksinski and Salvador Dalí to new contemporary artists including Jeremy Geddes and Michael Reedy.
Bio:
Scott McDonald is a Lincoln, Neb. native and self-taught artist. His work has transformed over the years, shifting from abstract and cartoon-inspired acrylic paintings to the current watercolor and gouache series. Scott has shown his new contemporary and dark surrealist pieces in Lincoln at Jake’s Cigars, Cosmic Eye Brewing, Tugboat Gallery, Burkholder Gallery, and the Resonator Gallery. He received the Best Newcomer award at the 2022 Lincoln Arts Festival, where he was featured as an emerging artist. Recently, Scott had three watercolor pieces featured in Manifest Gallery’s 22nd Season AQUACHROME Biennial exhibition.
Scott McDonald 