Richard Scott Blog - 2nd February 2025

Monday was a studio day and admin day. The weeks seem so short these days. I think it is because I have a set plan for each day of the week, which is becoming monotonous.  Blah.

Tuesday I got stuck in to some work in the studio again.

I was doing all sorts of bits and pieces on different artworks of different series that I realised I was all over the place. I sat myself down and made some notes of whet I actually want to do as an artist. The list contains about five bodies of work from bronzes to two bodies of ceramic works to two bodies of paintings. So, I decided I will focus on the large ceramic vases body of work for February to March and the bronzes April to June.

Rebul graffiti piece in the foreground going for a glass fitting.

Re-purposed studio stencils. 

Hendrik putting together a deconstructed High Road wine barrel. I am going to do this one with candy stripes.

I finally put the black line on this piece. It is a pair of my old studio work shorts. They are now ready to be repurposed into a shoulder bag.

First layer complete.

Final product.

 

Here is some text on these works I wrote and then filtered with Chat GPT:

In late 2024, Richard began experimenting with perfecting the use of gold spray paint in his work. While his original paper-based pieces were technically strong, they leaned towards a more academic approach. The goal was to develop a style that resonated more with the mainstream demand for his art—something that retained his signature aesthetic while pushing the boundaries of texture and layering.

This new body of work is created using reject prints from Richard’s studio, transforming discarded materials into striking original pieces. Each work follows a meticulous multi-step process:

• The original A1 reject print is cut in half, serving as the foundation for the piece.

• A stencil is used to apply the figure(s) in white, establishing the first layer of contrast.

• A bold black line is then hand-painted with a brush and left to dry, adding structure and depth.

• Once dry, the entire piece is sprayed with a layer of gold, creating a dramatic silhouette effect where the figure emerges from the metallic backdrop.

• The fourth layer reintroduces the figure(s) in the foreground, using white and red spray paint, followed by another application of black, enhancing depth and dimension.

• To complete the piece, Richard adds a final touch—either a heart, text, or both—bringing a personal, emotive element to each work.

Through this process, Richard achieves a balance between precision and spontaneity, producing a limited series of one-of-a-kind originals. The use of gold elevates these pieces, creating an interplay between light, shadow, and texture that makes each work unique.

Written by Richard and edited with ChatGPT

Wednesday I drove into Cape Town with Joanne. I moved all the art from the BMW’s boot into Angelique’s car as we were heading off to see Joshua in Hermanus at Rossouw Modern.

First we popped in to see Ahmed. Ahmed runs a successful weekly WhatsApp coin auction, and we picked his brain a little RE WhatsApp auctions.

Then off to Hermanus. We stopped at Peregrine farm stall and had a quick coffee and Wi-Fi catch up.

In Hermanus we first went to see a client about a commission and then a quick pop in to see Jay at Walker Bay Art Gallery for a 2025 planning update.

Photo of a photo.

I had to do it. 3rd time in my life I see a fireman’s pole leading down to a play room. Second time is my house, and first time is when I was as a kid at a house I vaguely remember visiting with my mom and dad.

Jay was 1000 miles an hour and inspiring us with his energy.

Jay himself. Love the pose!

The Richard Scott room.

Angelique and Jay discussing business. Loving that Anthony Lane Duco wood piece called  “High Hopes”.

Zoom Zoom.

 

Then we were off to see Mario to drop off some Road Signs and then a quick lunch with Joshua and Aida, Joshua’s partner in crime.

It’s always dangerous eating a nice lunch and then having to drive back home for 2 hours. Nap Time. Say no more. At least I got time to do my blog.

Guess what? I bought some worms for the garden.

A while back I noticed earth worms in the garden and was quite chuffed. It’s taken me 16 years to turn my garden from beach sand to luscious soil.

So, when Chad said to me he found a guy who sells earth worms for R350 a bucket full l, I jumped at the opportunity.

We popped in to see Jacques, re Joanne's wedding dress and then home.

Catching up with Jacques.

Snap.

I got back home too late to see the guys off. Joanne made a banana bread for Maureen at her office for her birthday and then I made a cup of tea and we collapsed on the couch.

Thursday was a cracker.

Drop Joanne, banking, meeting at Shift coffee just below Joanne’s offices. Then take away ice latte for Joanne as I headed out to see Paulo for another coffee but first Anthony Shapiro to pick up my maquettes and then pop into see Charl at World Art to get a photo of the 3D prints for social media. He was only opening at 10, so we got some window picks.

My beautiful Cape Town.

3D “My Girl” prints at Worldart. So awesome to once again be represented by Charl.

Peek a boo.

Photo of a photo.

Then coffee with Paulo to discuss a Paddle co-lab. We went to a nice coffee spot called “Sonny and Irene “. The coffee was nice. I ordered my double espresso in a shallow cappuccino cup as it cools quicker. I love the look on all coffee barista’s faces when you order a double espresso. They get a little grin with excitement to meet a purist coffee drinker, what with all these different versions these days.

Meet Paulo. A collector of my art, and a pioneer for the sport of Paddle in South Africa,

 

Ok then I had a farm style fruit juice while thrashing out some Paddle ideas with Paulo.

Then off to Jason bakery to do a sales meeting with Angelique. It was good to see and catch up with Jason before the meeting.

Jason had his delicious orange juice on his menu, and I could not say no to another fruit juice.

Joanne and I are about 10 days into a plant based diet so it was fitting. 

Eating plants must be the reason I’m up every morning at around 2-3am feeling so energised.

After a sales meeting and concluding four deals, Angelique and I were off for lunch with Les at Mano’s, which is walking distance.

I caught up with Shaun the manager while we waited for Les. Upon which none of us thought to book a table. Blah.

Les suggested he pick us up and I suggested we go see Jonno at Stepbrother’s down the road. Always good mama’s Italian food. Nomm Nomm.

The famous Jono. Chef, friend and owner of Stepbrothers restaurant.

Les and I talked about our collaboration. Les owns The High Road Wines, one of South Africa’s best red blends.

We agreed to selling the wine through Mother City Liquors and then plan a new series for 2026.

I got the photo of the famous Les Sweidan, Owner and producer of The High Road Wines.

Then off to pick Joanne up and head off to Claremont to see Nicola.

Nicola does all my cushions and pool pillows and the famous, very rare Richard Scott “r” T-Shirts, complete with holes (as Joanne would say), tatty (as my mom would say), in fashion (as my art and couture friends would say).

Nicola is going to get Beatrice, her seamstress, to help Joanne make up some skirts as Joanne is a bit tired of what she is seeing in retail.

 

Joanne and Nicola discuss life and clothing at  Nicola’s new offices at Homespun in Claremont.

Guess what again: Friday I woke up at 1.47am with a list of things to do. I remember the ideas scrolling through my head like a one arm bandit machine with the lever just being pulled.  1.47am was strange and it makes reference to my lucky number, 147. I sat up and pulled the blanket over my head and started writing down the list in my head.

I got reading about earth worms and crypto currency for some reason. Two worlds distant apart.

Earthworms because of my recent purchase and me wanting to learn how to introduce them into the garden and of course set some aside for breeding. I was reading up about crypto currency because I spotted a sign at the Waterfront Pick n Pay saying, “you can now use your crypto currency to buy your grocery’s at Pick n Pay”.

Earthworms everywhere, adding life to the garden.

It was very clever and obviously targeted towards Waterfront tourists from abroad,

Anyway, it made me check my Luno account. I see Ripple is doing well. I thought maybe I must spend the R250 a month that I spend on the lotto and rather buy Ripple.

I see 1 Bitcoin is now worth more than 1kg of gold.

Nonetheless, it’s now 4.30 am and I just got a WhatsApp from Richie as he is on an early morning flight out of Cape Town International. Last few check flights before he gets his licence.

Richie doing what he loves best.

Joanne and I popped in to Mervyn Gers to see Mervyn and to chat to David and Cherie about setting up camp at Mervyn Gers next week, to start two new ceramic projects.

Cool logo.

I have my own spot in the “Transfer” department. The logos get silkscreened onto water based transfers which are then added to the bottom of each product. 

Spotted this reject silkscreen for one of my early decanters pioneered and produced by Mervyn. 

Joanne’s stash of Mervyn Gers ceramics that we are taking home. Pop in to Mervyn’s factory to get your hands on these seconds. They are beautiful. 

Saturday was up early and in the studio. Joanne took all the girls dress shopping for the wedding, while I got into experimenting mode while the studio was empty.

Joanne came home a little late with the kids, so they unpacked, and we all jumped into the BMW to head off to Melkbos Kitchen for Chads 26th birthday lunch. As always, the food was top notch, as was the weekly family catch up conversation.

Happy family, Mom, Chad, Amy, Richie, Victoire, Daniella, Dean and Angelina.

Sunday was all alone at home without kids. Road run, admin, wedding planning and blog. At least we got a swim in.

Chill time now.

Happy Sunday

Thank you for reading.

r   i   c   h   a   r   d.