Scott Waters
(1979–)
Scott Waters
1979–
Scott Waters (1979– ) is a painter who captures the human and everyday aspects of life in the Canadian Armed Forces. Straying away from the heroic, he captures moments of boredom and anticipation that punctuate the realities of life as a soldier.
Born in Preston, England, Waters and his family lived in South Africa before immigrating to Canada, where they settled in Trail, British Columbia. After completing high school, Waters joined the military and served with the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry between 1989 and 1992. After leaving the military, he earned a BFA in British Columbia in 1997 and moved to Ontario where he earned an MFA from York University in 2004. Waters currently lives and works in Toronto.
Waters’ experience in the Canadian Armed Forces led to his acceptance into the Canadian Forces Artists Program. This opportunity allowed him to travel and document the realities of army life. He decided to capture the unglamorous elements of being a soldier, such as waiting and boredom. He paints using bright oils and acrylics on sheets of plywood, often incorporating the natural knots and imperfections of the wood into his work.
His work has been featured in numerous exhibitions across Canada since 2001, including solo exhibitions at the Canadian War Museum, Ottawa, the Vernon Public Art Gallery, and the Glenhyrst Gallery, among others. He has received numerous awards and grants, and in 2012, he was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal. While his practice has been rooted in his experiences with the military, his current work explores new subjects while continuing to build on his experiences in the Canadian Forces Artists Program.