Iris Scott. Interview for the Experiment

- Tell us, how did you get the idea to master such a painting technique?

- It was really an accident to become a finger painter. It began while I was living in the very hot climate of Taiwan in 2009. I could only afford to have air conditioning in one room of the apartment, my room, but the rest of the house and kitchen was sweltering hot. I had opted one day to finish a painting with my fingertips rather than leave my air conditioned room and break into a sweat. There was a certain style created without brushes that I recognized right away and from that point forward I left brushes behind forever.

- Did everything come out well from the beginning? What should one pay attention to in order to paint such wonderful paintings as you do?

- The first finger paintings were not great, but they had potential. When people ask me for advice about how to improve at art I have this one piece of advice: Do not bite off more than you can chew!
The key to succeeding in art is to protect yourself from becoming overwhelmed — or worse — quitting. You are your own best guide as you take this journey of teaching yourself. Stick to what you're good at, make beautiful things, and then carefully branch out with experiments. Collect the happy accidents in a manageable way. Pay very close attention to what you excel at and develop yourself there especially. Sell your art so you can pay for more supplies! Buy professional supplies as soon as you can it's very important to buy quality. I like Holbein and Daniel Smith oils.

 - When did you realize that you want to be an artist?

- I knew I wanted to make art as often as possible from the age of 7. I studied art in college, but many people told me it would be impossible to make a living as an artist. As a precaution I made sure to become a certified elementary teacher just in case my Artist career fell through. Then magic happened....three years ago I sold a painting for just $200 through Facebook, but I was living in Taiwan where rent was only $100/month! It was in that moment that I realized I could support myself by working as an artist as long as I kept my cost of living very low and continued to market myself online. One thing led to another, I complete several paintings each week for 3 years and now I can sell paintings for $4000-$15000. The key to selling your art is to let the market tell you how much your art is worth. Your clientele grows, your skill improves, your prices rise, your supplies become more and more affordable. It is a slow and steady process.

- What motivates you to create? Where do you find inspiration?

- I'm lucky. I see ideas for paintings everywhere. I literally do not leave the house without a camera, for fear I'll see the perfect painting and miss an opportunity to capture it and bring the concept home. However, I see BETTER ideas when I'm traveling, which is why I travel abroad as often as possible. In December I took a short trip to Thailand, since returning to Seattle these past few months I have been creating a large Thailand collection which will be unveiled March 16th 2013 at Cole Gallery in Edmond, Wa. (Colegallery.net) The day after that opening party I will hop on a plane with my Sweetheart and the two of us fly to Nicaragua for 6 weeks. Once I return from Nicaragua I will put together a new collection based on the Central American ideas I capture and bring home. It's just easier to spy painting ideas when surroundings and colors are totally fresh and new. I'm not sure yet where I'll go after Nicaragua, maybe India.

 
- You have a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Masters in Teaching Elementary, tell us how did you study, was it interesting?

- Ah yes School! I remember school. Was school interesting? Yes it certainly was, in graduate school I spent 2 years studying everything I could find about artistic development in children and adults, which led me to the realization that talent is a myth....the only thing that separates artists from non-artists is practice. I've always studied hard and enjoyed school. Now that school's over I just like to work! I work very hard.

 
- All your works are very bright and cheerful. Can you call yourself a happy person?

- I do call myself a happy person. I learned that from my mommy, she is very good at laughing at everything. You might find it interesting, but whenever I feel very stressed I can become very relaxed by painting. In fact, my colors get very bright when I'm blue, they lighten me up.

- In your opinion, what do people need in order to be happy?

- To stop doing all things they don't like to do.
Maybe the key to being happy is to be in love with something or someone, I'm lucky because I'm IN LOVE WITH my work.
But really I think the key to being happy is to be able to recognize how fabulous your life already is and not focus on what it could be. Gratitude. Be grateful all the time for what you have and be playful with your friends and family.

 
- Iris, we have set before ourselves the task of creating a cultural-social internet channel (Internet TV is growing in Europe, but we don’t have anything like that in Ukraine yet), which would support, popularize and develop culture. And your moral support and advice would be very helpful to us. If possible, could you tell us how you feel about such a project (creating a nonprofit Internet channel, we have decided to call it Experiment-TV)? Can we count on your moral support in the future and possibly get some advice from you as from an interesting and creative person?

- Absolutely, I would love to be a part of this. Count me in. The internet opens doors, it certainly has changed my life.
Thank you for this interview, it is a true honor to be interviewed.