06/06/2026
is back for the summer.
This edition takes a closer look at Scott Sawtellโs (.sawtell) ๐ฃ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐น๐ฑ๐ ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ผ (๐ง๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ) (2019) and offers insight into the practice of this exhibiting artist.
Join us next Wednesday for a free online talk, where Sawtell will discuss his creative process and respond to questions from the audience. To learn more or register, visit VarleyArtGallery.ca.
| About the Artist |
In his painting practice, Sawtell blends chaotic energy with playful, story driven imagery. On the surface of his canvases, mysterious scenes seem to materialize fully formed: a creature rises from a fiery swamp, its disembodied limbs jutting from discarded machinery; an arch hovers between the trunks of an upside down forest, a toothless grin anchoring the landscape. Elsewhere, bright flora distracts from otherworldly terrains populated by fallen knights and fractured superheroes.
Yet none of these scenarios are planned. They emerge through the act of painting itself, as Sawtell lets his subconscious guide the first brush marks. He gives himself over to the creative process, relinquishing order and balance in favour of a more disorganized, intuitive way of working. He often rotates his canvases, painting from multiple angles to loosen his application and avoid falling into predetermined narratives. From this initial abstraction, lines and colours begin to cohere, forming shapes that he gradually manipulates into recognizable figures. Still, the work resists strict categorization, allowing figuration, landscape, and abstraction to coexist.
Sawtell's imagery draws on narrative traditions and visual storytelling, referencing popular culture, science fiction, and animation, among other influences. Running beneath these scenes is an undercurrent of fear and anxiety shaped by today's political and economic climates. There's an uneasiness to his work, a foreboding that you can't quite place. As he navigates the world while raising two children, painting becomes a way to process uncertaintyโa practice that helps him make sense of things and supports his own mental well being.
