December 11, 2021
Scout frost: portraits through the pandemic
STORY BY ava briccetti / EDITED BY olivia mckeon
Scout Frost (‘24) is an artist from Syracuse, NY, with a passion for creating art through various mediums. They are a writing major with an art minor. Art has always been something ingrained into Scout’s life and they have been creating, one way or another, for as long as they can remember. Currently, their favorite mediums are oil paint and acrylic wash.
Ava Briccetti corresponded with Scout Frost through an email interview.
AB: How did you get started painting/creating?
SF: I grew up in a creative household, so I’ve been interested in art my entire life. My parents have been running a small painting business together for over three decades. Their dedication to art has given me the opportunities and resources I need to be creative. Although I’ve always been creative, I didn’t begin to paint regularly until the pandemic started. Unable to work or attend school in person, I spent most days painting portraits. Painting became one of my favorite pastimes and helped me cope during periods of immense anxiety. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to minor in art at Ithaca College and learned invaluable lessons from my professors and peers.
AB: Where do you draw your inspiration from?
SF: Lately I’ve been drawing a lot of inspiration from my classmates. I love walking in the halls of Cerrache to see what other people have been working on. I also draw inspiration from the people I care about. I love drawing and painting people. Being on campus with my friends has helped me find more subjects, so I have a lot of plans to feature them in my work very soon!
AB: You have a unique style, especially when it comes to your portraits expressions. Can you describe your art style?
SF: One of my favorite elements to mess around with is color. I didn’t have a lot of formal experience with art before college, so I started out painting with a lot of wild color combinations.
“Ella”
AB: Why do you create art? Who do you create art for?
SF: I make art because I have to make art. I don’t know how else to put it. It’s almost like eating or sleeping for me; If I don’t make art for a while I feel out of balance. So honestly, I create art for myself. Do I love compliments? Yes, absolutely. But if not a single person paid any attention to my art, I’d still have an itch to create.
AB: A lot of your paintings are portraits, is there a reason for that?
SF: I just love people. I’m an introvert, so I keep my circles pretty small, but the people in my life are so immensely important to me. During the pandemic, I couldn’t really be around many people, so the subjects I had the most access to were models I found online. Now that my loved ones and I are vaccinated, I have more people I can draw and paint.
AB: One of the main questions in Art Causes a Ripple is: “How do you use art to disrupt spaces in stasis?” How do you do that with your art?
SF: My main focus for a while has been depicting demographics of people who don’t often get fairly represented. I enjoy showing the soft, human side of everyone I paint. Painting brings me peace, and I think that sentiment is represented in the people I depict. So maybe my art isn’t always causing a ripple, but I think that calmness can be revolutionary in a fast-paced, chaotic world.
AB: What do you hope, if anything at all, other people can gain from what you create?
SF: I’m always looking for inspiration. I hope I can be inspiring to someone else out there too. There can never be too many beautiful or interesting things in this world, so I’m just going to try to keep doing my part to add more beauty and intrigue.
“Hunter”
Do you have a specific process when sitting down to paint? Both mentally and physically?
SF: Painting is a meditative practice for me. I don’t always sit down while I paint though; it’s important for me that I have space to move, stand up, or sit down when I paint. The whole process can be pretty physical sometimes. Even more important is time. I need at least two hours blocked out when I paint, which is often difficult to set aside, especially if the painting is just for fun and not for class or a commission.
AB: Is art something you wish to pursue as a career after college?
SF: I’ve gone back and forth many times about my future in art. As a child, I imagined I’d inherit my parents’ business and carry on their legacy. Later, I lost a lot of hope for a future in art because high school classes put so much pressure on me to be the perfect, straight-A student. I didn’t have time to make any art I was proud of. Now that I’m in college, I know that art has a place in my life. Although my career plans primarily center on writing, I would love to do commissions and sell other work to supplement my income. However, I have doubts that I will rely on art for my major source of income because I fear doing so would destroy my love for it.
AB: What’s your favorite artwork(s) that you have done?
SF: Some examples of my favorite pieces are “Heated Gaze” and “Blueish”.
“Heated Glaze”
“Blueish”
AB: Do you have any future pieces/projects you’re working on currently?
SF: At the moment, I’m working on a three part series of portraits featuring my friends. Each portrait will portray them hugging each other. This project is close to my heart because I love these friends so much and I was deprived from hugging the people I care about for so long during the pandemic. I imagine plenty of people can relate to those sentiments.