 Scott Prior is a native of Southern California and like most other kids growing up, had his share of scrapes, bruises and broken bones. To help escape the boredom while healing from his injuries, his mom bought him a set of charcoal pencils and a box of pastels…and as the saying goes, “the rest is history”. During his teenage years, art was pushed aside and when it came time to enroll in college and find a major, Scott was encouraged to pick something marketable. The thought of becoming an artist was the last thing on his mind. Six majors into his pursuit of something marketable, Scott began to feel a little lost. His mom encouraged him to take up a drawing class at his local Junior College for fun…it was there that he rediscovered his passion for art, it was there that he found himself doing what he should have doing the whole time.
Upon determining that drawing and painting were his future, picking an art school was simple. The location and the caliber of teachers at The Academy of Art College in San Francisco made the choice easy for him. At the Academy, he studied under artists, Craig Nelson, Bill Maughan and Hui Han Lui and learned higher artistic ideals through intensive study while developing a solid foundation of design, drawing and painting.
Shortly after graduation, Scott relocated to southern California and began to find his way -- opening the many doors that having a degree in Illustration can open in Los Angeles. Having learned the lesson, to pursue what inspires you, early on, he would not be wavered from that quest. That quest led him to paint - whenever and wherever possible, with many friends or totally alone, and to share that enthusiasm by teaching others how to capture their inspiration on canvas for themselves. Today, whether he’s in his studio, painting ‘en plein aire’ or out catching his favorite surf break – Scott recognizes the many dimensions and shades that make up his everyday life and is inspired by them.
His memberships include the California Art Club, Laguna Plein Air Painters Association and Oil Painters of America.
Some highlights of his career are group exhibitions at the Frederick Weisman Museum of Art at Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA, the Pasadena Museum of California Art, Pasadena, CA, the Bower’s Museum, Santa Ana, CA, and in the prestigious Oil Painters of America National Show.
He has been awarded and recognized by La Quinta Arts Foundation’s Desert Plein Air Invitational, La Quinta, CA, The Society of Illustration Los Angeles, The Artist Magazine, Carmel Art Festival, Carmel, CA and The Bower’s Museum Plein Air Show, Santa Ana, CA. Most recently Scott was featured in SouthWest Art Magazine as “Artist to Watch” for California.
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