Bruised, bloody and beaten: these were a few words that came to mind when I first saw Julia Scott’s work. While doing some research on local design group Yours Truly, of which Julia was a member, I came across a few posters and illustrations she had done. I felt a little uncomfortable about the violent and abusive feelings that I got from her work, but was also drawn in. I immediately wondered who and what was behind the work. I was able to ask Julia a few questions about her process and subject matter.
READ THE FULL VERSION OF RVA #6 HERE
Bruised, bloody and beaten: these were a few words that came to mind when I first saw Julia Scott’s work. While doing some research on local design group Yours Truly, of which Julia was a member, I came across a few posters and illustrations she had done. I felt a little uncomfortable about the violent and abusive feelings that I got from her work, but was also drawn in. I immediately wondered who and what was behind the work. I was able to ask Julia a few questions about her process and subject matter.
READ THE FULL VERSION OF RVA #6 HERE
How did you get into illustration? Did you have any formal training?
I’ve always been a drawing-stuff-kid. I grew up trying to explain things to myself with pictures. I remember being really young and watching movies I didn’t understand, and then drawing what happened in them and making little story packets. I’m a desperately visual learner, and drawing wasn’t so much a passion I developed over time as it was a tool I’ve always used to teach myself how to figure things out. I started asking my mom to take me to the comic book store to pick up the individual MixxZine issues of Sailor Moon when I was about 7 or 8, and I think it was after reading that first issue that I realized it was possible to do drawing as a real job. It seemed crazy that I could do the one thing I spent all my time doing anyway, only to somehow professionally make a living. I attended Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) to much enjoyment, and to this day, there is still nothing else I would rather do than explain things to myself with pictures.
The subjects of your illustrations often look in distress, beat up, or upset. Is there a particular experience or emotion that transfers into your work, creating this look?
There’s something really electric about moments like these to me. I’m very into the idea of the Pregnant Moment. The filthier and more violent, the better. Real human emotion can best be seen in moments of duress, slipping through the cracks into those little quiet places between action and reaction. I like searching for the original emotion behind the action, and pulling it to the forefront for a thoughtful pause. I think violence can be quite beautiful if spun the right way. Physical damage to the figure in any given piece of this theme is more about a manifestation of an inner struggle.
What process goes into creating the vibrant colors and heavy strokes and lines that make up your work?
I have a routine. We could say this routine might involve putting on a really huge smock. It might involve brewing an obscenely big pot of coffee. And most secretly, it may or may not involve a Rambo headband. But it always involves a soundtrack, and it always starts with frenetic pencil scribbling. By the time I can move on to inks, my hand will have picked up the sort of electrical charge I associate with being in The Zone, and then things take over themselves from there. My hand runs on kinetic energy, and the inking process swings between tiny knuckled gestures and broad sweeping strokes. My biggest mantra is Have No Fear. The inking process is the most violent, and the most cathartic aspect of any one piece. Coloring, done mostly digitally in photoshop, is by far the most time consuming. I will create three or so different color palettes and alternate between them, taking bits of contrast from here and there that I like, and combining them into one final piece. A lot of staring is involved.
What kind of materials do you use to create your illustrations?
When normally getting down to business, I like to use any manner of size of sable brushes (mostly 0-3), teamed up with my good friend, waterproof Sumi ink, in the friendly green bottle. Recently though I’ve discovered the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen, which will run you a little more than your average brush, but is totally worth it for the convenience. They come with two ink cartridge refills, and move like a dream. You can get them in different colors and tip sizes, and they are a good balance between fine hand brush work, and what using a felt-tip pen feels like. Additionally I’ll sometimes rock a little masking liquid for neat background effects, and sometimes a little compressed charcoal powder for some texture. I’ll get some nice paper if I’m doing a final, but most of my work can be done on plain old printer paper. And then it’s straight onto the computer for piecing everything together. Though all of these steps are subject to change if a lightning bolt hits me and I get a different idea.
Are there any particular influences that have helped you develop as an artist?
Comic books, without a doubt, are my favorite format of illustrations in action. I read a lot of them. I draw them. I dabble in the Marvel/DC universe, but my heart truly lies in the indie comic scene, in the land of small runs and funny book shapes and paper that smells like screen printing ink. I also have a deep and abiding love of manga, specifically Shonen adventure titles and post World War II gekiga. Some artists I’ve taken into my visional arsenal include Taiyo Matsumoto, Paul Pope, Nate Powell, Katsuhiro Otomo, Becky Cloonan, Vasilis Lolos, Akimi Yoshida, Jillian Tamaki, Osamu Tezuka, Hayao Miyazaki, and the always hilarious Kate Beaton. In my heart though, all of my most valuable experience and influence comes from working with friends, and feeding off of the communal artistic enthusiasm. Some other things that inspire me include Heraldry, Urban Planning, Aquariums, Intergalactic Travel, Super Saiyans, the writings of JD Salinger and Ursula K LeGuin, Lady Ankles, and Preordained Mystical Destiny.
