Scott VanderVoort is a New York-based artist whose work broadly explores themes of impermanence, beauty and the ambiguous divide between art and the mundane. VanderVoort works in both two and three dimensions, with paint, sculpture and installation, and through his art engages viewers in an often playful dialogue about the process by which objects, images and spaces acquire meaning. Whether working with found objects like stone blocks from Bali or the walls of New York City elevator shafts, VanderVoort’s work often involves the process, in his words, of “activating space, place and objects to bring life to what has seemingly been overlooked or disregarded.”

Where are you from and where do you live now?  New Jersey / Manhattan 

What was your first experience with art? Watching an Alexander Calder video on his circus models when I was in third grade.

When did you know you wanted to be an artist? I never wanted to be I just became one.

Who or what inspires you? Nature, texture, color, balance and beauty, and the unknown.

Tell us about your experience in Bali? My time in Bali forever changed my trajectory in my personal and professional life. My 2 years there gave me time and space to explore ideas I had been thinking about for decades. The Balinese people inspire me and the material that is around them, particularly bamboo and limestone.

What is your favorite material to work with and why? I have a passion for materiality so all materials evoke something for me. The marriage of an idea and a material and when it fits will be why I choose it.

Who are some of your favorite artists or designers, alive or dead? Many— Ellesworth Elly, Donald Judd, David Smith, A.Calder, Luis Kahn, Isamu Noguchi, Carlos Scarpa, Chuck Close, Dan Graham. The list goes on and on.

Do you listen to music while you work? Yes, Nina Simón, Jazz, Brazilian, sounds from Mali, classical music, meditative music, and electronic music, 

Favorite museums or galleries? MET, Pace, Hauser and Worth, Karma Gallery 

Favorite travel destinations? Asia, I’m most creative and perceptive when I enter countries and cultures which are foreign to me. I feel at home in the curiosity and the newness. It fuels me. I particularly enjoy the Balinese people and their love, respect, and dedication to their community and their handmaking abilities.

PROUST QUESTIONNAIRE

What is your idea of perfect happiness? Traveling to new places and living and working in those new places.

What is your greatest fear? Myself and pushing through my negative voices. 

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? My temper.

What is the trait you most deplore in others? Laziness 

What is your greatest extravagance? Caviar.

What is your current state of mind? Peaceful.

On what occasion do you lie? To save someone else from embarrassment.

What do you most dislike about your appearance? My smile, I know it’s sad.

Which living person do you most despise? Putin.

What is the quality you most like in a man? Integrity.

What is the quality you most like in a woman? Confidence. 

Which words or phrases do you most overuse? Activating space.

What or who is the greatest love of your life? Health.

When and where were you happiest? Indonesia.

Which talent would you most like to have? I don’t desire talent, I work on myself to achieve what I need to. 

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Temper while driving.

What do you consider your greatest achievement? My son.

If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? A bird.

Where would you most like to live? Southeast Asia.

What is your most treasured possession? My hands.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? Poverty. 

What is your favorite occupation? Artist.

What is your most marked characteristic? Enthusiasm. 

What do you most value in your friends? Supportiveness. 

Who are your favorite writers? Donald Judd.

Who is your hero of fiction? I don’t read fiction.

Which historical figure do you most identify with? Alexander Von Humboldt.

Who are your heroes in real life? Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

What is it that you most dislike? Greed.

What is your greatest regret? I try not to regret.  

How would you like to die? Quietly.

What is your motto? Life is too short.

Text: Veronica H. Speck