About the Artist - Scarlett Chou
Scarlett Chou
Our artist this month for the cover painting titled “Enthusiasm” is Scarlett Chou. This piece is part of a series she has been working on for an upcoming exhibit in Japan.
Scarlett got her artistic talent from her mother, who worked as a fashion design illustrator for newspapers and magazines. She finds her inspiration from her life experiences, travels and her Christian beliefs. Often compared to Art Deco artist, Erte, Scarlett’s computer-generated works are influenced by her Chinese heritage, which she often infuses with Western designs.
Born and raised in Taiwan, Scarlett found it extremely competitive to get into college. Working diligently on her school work back then, art was just a hobby. Once she became an adult, Scarlett believed it was too late for her to become an artist, since she had not spent her entire young life training to be one.
One day, a famous artist, Shaoguang Ting, had an exhibition in Taiwan. Scarlett went to the exhibition, talked with Mr. Ting and asked if he’d be willing to take a look at her artwork. He did and insisted she had to be an artist, and must not waste her talent. He said often times the older people get, the sharper their skills become after years of practice, but their creativity is usually lacking. Scarlett was just the opposite. She had no problem with creativity, but needed her skills sharpened, since she had not been trained as an artist.
Scarlett moved to California, where she attended UCLA. She decided to major in computer graphics, just to be safe. It was there she discovered she could use the computer to create fine art. Allowing her imagination to soar, she is able to create things using the computer she couldn’t create with paint.
Another advantage to using her laptop in creating her fine art is that she can work from anywhere in the world. And, computer generated art is less expensive. Scarlett also touches up and hand paints some of her artwork to create originals for collectors.
Her pieces feature soft lines, simple and delicate strokes, rich elegance, and refreshing purity, presenting a unique style that has gained her tens of millions of supporters around the world. In mainland China, her works have been viewed by more than 21 million people. In 2014, with the strong support of 1.81 million votes, she earned the honor of being “China’s Most Popular Artist on the Internet” and one of “China’s Top 10 Female Artists.” She was also honored as the top female talent of the overseas Chinese community, combining beauty, exquisite painting, writing, poetry and aesthetic sense in one body.
Scarlett has published five books in Taiwan, China and Japan and has been blogging since 2008, with over 20,000,000 viewers. She believes this number is so high because people want something beautiful and positive in their lives. Notice how her subjects are always stretching and her use of bright colors for positive energy. We thank Scarlett Chou for her beautiful art and allowing us to showcase it on our cover!