| Artist Bio: William Scott Jennings has been a professional artist since 1973. He began his career in commercial art; gallery exposure began in 1976; and by 1978 he was showing his work in New Mexico, Arizona and Texas . After residing in Taos, New Mexico for 15 years, Scott relocated to Sedona, Arizona in January 1996. His paintings are in corporate and private collections around the world, including the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC and the Ford Motor Company.
Jennings is a Master Signature Member of the Oil Painters of America (OPA-M) and a Signature Member of the Laguna Plein Air Painters Association (LPAPA) and the Rocky Mountain Plein Air Painters (RMPAP). Feature articles about Jennings’ work have appeared in Art of the West Magazine, Southwest Art Magazine, Focus Magazine Santa Fe and Art Business News as well as features and cover art in American Artist Magazine, International Artist Magazine and The Artist’s Magazine.
The Eiteljorg Museum in Indianapolis, IN invited Scott to participate in their inaugural "Quest for the West" exhibit and sale in September, 2006. There were 40 painters and 10 sculptors invited from around the United States.
Jennings is a participating artist in the national museum exhibition, "From Sea to Shining Sea", a nationally touring exhibit of 15 museums across the United States for a period of three years. The exhibit opened in May 2004 at the Haggin Museum in California.
Scott was chosen as the show poster artist for the Sedona Plein Air 2005 and the Telluride Plein Air 2004. He was the guest speaker at the 2004 Desert Plein Air show in La Quinta, CA and taught a plein air workshop as part of the event.
Jennings was part of two national invitational shows in 2001: " Grand Canyon Expressions" at the Forbes Gallery in New York , NY and Burlingame , CA ; 15 artists made an eight day painting expedition down the Colorado River into the Grand Canyon . He was also invited to participate in "Contemporary Artists Paint Yosemite " at the Haggin Museum in California .
The 2005 Oil Painters of America National Show awarded Jennings the Award of Excellence for Master Signature Members for his painting of the Grand Canyon titled, "The Mystical Canyon". It is the top award for Master Signature members. The OPA's 10th Annual National Show awarded Jennings the Founders’ Award for his painting “Winter Sun”, and in 2004 he received the Masters Merit Award. The 2001 Laguna Beach Plein Air Invitational awarded Scott an honorable mention for his painting “Sunset on Crystal Cove. Scott also received best of show at the 1999 Impressionaire Show at the PGA West Country Club in La Quinta, CA and honorable mention in 2000. The PBS television series, The Artists Workshop featured Mr. Jennings as he produces a plein air painting for the fourth episode in the 2001 line up. His painting “The Red Wall” was chosen as the cover art for America West Airlines’ in flight magazine for the August 2001 issue.
The 1998 Arts for the Parks Show named Jennings as the Best of Show Gold Medal and Grand Prize Winner for his painting “Timeless Beauty”. In the 1994 Arts for the Parks Show, his painting “Sunset on Isis” was the region II winner, an award for the best painting of the southwest region of the United States. It was the recipient of a Silver Medal and reproduced as part of the 1994 National Park Stamp. The Grand Canyon National Park used Scott’s painting as the invitation image for the Arts for the Parks exhibit at the Canyon. The show receives approximately 2400 entries annually. Jennings’ work was in the top 100 show for five years in a row before retiring from the competition after his 1998 win.
Two of Jennings’ paintings have been used as cover art for books: A Roadside Guide to Rocky Mountain National Park and most recently, Physical Geology, a college textbook.
In 1989, Scott participated in the first of several group shows in the major cities of Japan. His work consistently sold throughout the country. The 1988 festival celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act commissioned Jennings to produce a poster for the event. In 1986 Scott spent a month as the guest artist of Rocky Mountain National Park and was the first painter given the honor of ‘Artist in Residence’ of RMNP. The 1985 Wilderness Art Exhibit in Fort Collins, CO chose Jennings’ “The Elk Range” as the show poster for the event. Scott won three top awards at the 1984 New Mexico Professional Art Exhibit and the painting is now part of the collection of the New Mexico State Capitol in Santa Fe.
|
