When I first saw the work of Victoria Scotti, it took me a while to realize that they were in fact drawings! Although based upon reference photographs, Victoria uses softer and more complex focuses on the horse so that the resulting art presents it as a living, tangible being. To recreate life as she sees and knows it with just pencils and pens is exciting to say the least.
Victoria has a gorgeous handling of graphite, charcoal and ink. She begins with outlining a sketch and proceeds to building layers of texture. The contrast between a shiny graphite mark and a velvet charcoal produces really interesting visual effects.
A master of her craft, Victoria captures every bit of fine detail perfectly. Her depictions of eyes and hair are particularly lifelike. The end product gives a sense of dimension on a virtually flat surface–I almost expect Victoria’s drawings to canter off the page!
In her visceral yet delicate renderings of horses, I can feel the artist’s emotional connection with the subject. Victoria’s horse drawings are infused with a sense of what I can best describe as quiet, inviting solitary times of reflection and discovery. These qualities remain at the heart of her creative process as well–inspired by her surroundings.
Victoria’s Instagram overflows with examples of the breadth of jobs she’s tackled in her career as a fine artist: sketches for commissions and even nostalgic mixed media pieces. She’s now moving in more whimsical directions in her work, including drawings based around My Little Ponies and regularly shares her works in progress.
Her bucking horse portrait was so popular (my personal favorite) that it was turned into a tattoo. I see it as a huge compliment if people want to get your work tattooed on them!
