Scott's Cumbrian Blue(s), American Scenery, Hudson River, Indian Point No. 4

Paul Scott repurposes antique ceramics to comment on contemporary issues. By subtly changing traditional designs, Scott subverts the vessel’s original context, transforming a domestic object into a political one. This transfer-printed panoramic view was created using a collage of a modern photograph of New York’s Indian Point nuclear power plant and landscape designs from traditional American tablewares. At first glance the scene recalls the romantic landscapes of 19th-century Hudson River School painters, but the power plant brings us into the present day and presents a powerful contrast with the otherwise pastoral view. Scott created the work in Cummington, MA using a platter originally produced for the American market in Staffordshire, England.

-Aaron Miller, Associate Curator of Visual and Material Culture, Mount Holyoke College Art Museum (Sept. 2016)