Meet Scout Wilson: Painter& muralist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Scout Wilson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Scout, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I’m originally from Reading, Pennsylvania, it’s a small city outside of Philadelphia. This is a very poor city, and not really the best place to live, but anyone who lives there, does so in spite of the bad apples. Growing up my mom was a single mother and I saw my father every other weekend, I have three brothers and three sisters, so being the youngest I had to fight for everything. I always felt like I had something to prove, being the baby but also being from Reading, any surrounding city or town would sneer their noses away from us and call us the “ghetto”. I resented it, but rather than letting it consume me I let it fuel me, I wanted to be better, make my surroundings more beautiful, so I would paint, on everything. I would convince my teachers to let me create murals, in hallways, gyms, stairs, legitimately anywhere that could use a fresh coat of paint. I created a few I wasn’t supposed to, but all in the name of art, right? I will never stop trying to beautify my surroundings, no matter where I am, because that little girl from Reading still has so much to prove. 

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I aspire to be a full time artist, that will always be the goal, but I’m still taking baby steps to get to that point while still working my full time job at a pharmacy. However that being said, nothing will get in the way of my goal, I fit in as many shows as physically possible, take on as many commissions, and just started a T-shirt website. I’ve wanted to be an artist since I first put pencil on paper, or rather the walls in my case, my first murals were when I was five. I don’t think my mom appreciated that, but it didn’t stop me from drawing on anything or anyone that stood too close to me. My father was an artist, and he would give me lessons when I would go over to his house. As a young child and well into adulthood I experienced a lot of trauma and abuse, so art became my saving grace of coping with those experiences. I make pieces as representations of my dreams so that I can understand them and myself better since I couldn’t afford therapy. In my work I depict strong women that live in my dreams in hopes to give myself that strength.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would start in Deep Ellum and work my way out to where I live in Mckinney. I only really know the artsy places like Deep Ellum Art Co., Vibes Texas shows are always a blast, and end in Emporium Pies in downtown McKinney.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Since I moved to Dallas I’ve been included in several art shows and markets but I believe the first people to give me a shot was Royal Lanes studios I did music videos as I painted and created a number of murals in their studio. If it hadn’t have been for Mel I would probably still just be painting for myself.

Website: https://www.museema.com/scoutwilsonart
Instagram: Scoutwilsonart
Facebook: Scout Wilson Art

Image Credits
Andrew Wilson (photography)