Scott Gleeson

Region: West

My practice mines the rich histories of twentieth-century avantgarde art and architecture, attempting to identify possible contemporary functions of the artist within society and to schematize the artist’s relationship to audience, community, and the broader culture industry. Philosophy, art history, and the social sciences inform my analytical methodologies and my attempts to model new forms of aesthetic engagement with audiences marginalized by society and traditional arts institutions. The predominant concern in my studio and public art is the social dimension of space, particularly as it is objectified within the built environment, cultural institutions, and cognitive structures. I strive to develop projects that reveal the structural relationship between space and power, and liberate and empower the viewer through engagement in the creative process. My current work responds to crises facing combat veterans on their return from war, advocating a utilitarian, therapeutic graphic art capable of transforming domestic and institutional spaces into healing environments. These paintings and installations are inspired by psychoanalyst Francine Shapiro’s controversial therapy method of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing.