Celebrating Ambiguity: The Art Portfolio of Scott Ross
Untitled (Fabric 1), digital photograph
Photographer and artist Scott Ross has made a portfolio practice out of celebrating ambiguity. Using techniques of abstraction, double-exposure, and close-up or skewed viewpoints, the artist takes recognizable forms and turns them on their head.
Untitled (Goudreaux | Vermeer 1), digital photograph
I’m really enjoying the works in Scott’s series of images from 2017. These pieces take well-known historical paintings, and using a double-exposure technique, abstract and obscure them until they seem more like dreams or partial recollections of the same paintings. Familiar faces and forms rise to the surface of these works, creating an instant connection with the viewer while maintaining distance from the appropriated imagery.
These works seem like a continuation of Scott’s visual reflections, which we explored in our previous feature. The tight geometry of the reflected forms is left behind here, allowing for more movement and flow, and space for a fascinating kind of uncertainty. The warm, almost aged-looking color palette of these recent images casts them in a pleasantly anachronistic light.
