Wilmette Business Owner Shows Off Artistic Talent

The walls of the Judy A. Slaslow Gallery are covered with intricate, abstract collages as guests make their way around the space on Friday night during the opening reception for Jordan Scott's: New Works. The Chicago-area resident and Wilmette business owner took around a year to make the collection of diptychs and larger pieces that fill the exhibition space. 

Scott has been making art since childhood, starting with painting and moving on to other mediums but one thing has always been a consistent part of his work: stamps. 

"I've been a stamp collector since I was 8-years-old," explains Scott. "At first the stamps were just a part of the work, then they became the whole thing."

On an average panel, there are around 5200 stamps which Jordan Scott has collected at auctions, mostly online. The standard and commemorative stamps used in his pieces range from the turn of the century through the 1970's. The pieces are incredibly intricate and time consuming, each one taking about a month to complete. 

"I work on two or three at once. It keeps me from losing my mind," laughs Scott. "I don't do quick stuff."

Scott also draws inspiration from years studying martial arts, holding a 5th degree black belt in Shotokan karate, and also teaching at the Traditional Karate Center in Wilmette, which he owns.

"Martial arts is based on repetition. This idea of up and down and back and forth and the same thing over and over again," he explains. "This has got to be where my works comes from."

From far away, the abstracted landscapes and patterns of color resemble a woven fabric of colors but upon closer inspection, the intricate stamps collaged over one another add another element, each with their own story and history. 

"It's all about your work ethic," says Scott when describing his process. "No one is going to say I just whipped one up."

Jordan Scott's work will be on exhibition at the Judy A. Slaslow Gallery at 300 W. Superior St. in Chicago until Feb. 26.

To find out more about the artist, visit www.jordanscottart.com