Caroline Scorzelli

Where do you live: Boston, MA.
Your education: BFA from Tufts University/SMFA – M.Arch from Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
Your discipline: Registered Architect (RA, MA), AIA, NCARB – Painter: Abstract Landscape, Colorists.

Your work in the ‘Geometrical Landscape: Sun’ series features constructed landscapes and a vibrant use of color. Can you share the inspiration behind this series and how you developed your unique approach to geometric forms? 

The inspiration behind the series is the marriage of my training as a landscape painter and as a practicing architect (RA – MA). I build landscapes on canvas. The architect’s pallet is architectural spaces, geometric forms and construction materials and the painter’s pallate is color and texture.  The paintings are blueprints for a landscape. Whereas the standard building design is based on function, a person enters the building for a purpose: work, sleep, entertainment, etc., a person enters a landscape for mindful meditation. 

Caroline Scorzelli | Geometric Landscapes: Sun-01

As someone with both an architectural and artistic background, how do these two disciplines influence each other in your work? Do you approach your art from an architect’s perspective or vice versa?

I approach my work from a state of grounding calm.  I use color and texture from my artistic background to design the painting scape from the geometry of architectural building design.

Color seems to play a significant role in your ‘Sun’ series. How do you choose your color palettes, and what emotional or conceptual significance do the colors hold for you?

Painting is an exercise in mindfulness.  It is the conjunction of painting, a subconscious state of mind, and architecture, a conscious state of mind. 

Caroline Scorzelli | Geometric Landscapes: Sun-02

Can you tell us about your process when working on a new project? Do you start with sketches, digital designs, or is it more intuitive? 

My compositions are developed from archived paintings.  I build from the blueprint of the archived painting and continue this process until the composition’s layers of colors and textures create a landscape full of textured layers and overlayed color.

What challenges have you faced in merging your roles as an architect and an artist, and how do you overcome them?

As an Architect, I’m highly technical. The architectural geometric spaces are from a series of data points: the stakeholders, operation, function, constructability, funding and design standards/regulations. As an Artist, the geometric spaces do not technically include these data points, so are free from conscious constraint – this is how I release my emotions as an artist onto the canvas without a care.

Caroline Scorzelli | Geometric Landscapes: Sun-03

Many artists find inspiration in their surroundings. How do your travels or environments influence the landscapes you create?

Boston, MA influences the landscape. I use my visual memories of my neighborhood in Boston to create landscapes.

What message or feeling do you hope to convey to viewers through your ‘Geometrical Landscape: Sun’ series?

A feeling of calm.

Caroline Scorzelli | Geometric Landscapes: Sun-04