Pigment Hunter was created by artist and educator Scott Sutton for creating and documenting his work with mineral pigments in the creation of natural paint. Scott has been empowering other artists for over 15 years with the skills and knowledge to use local materials in a sustainable manner to reduce their own ecological footprint on the natural environment.
Scott's interest in using mineral pigments first began back in 2001 while living in Taos, NM where he was making paints for other artists with pigments that he purchased. After a hike in the colorful landscape of Abiquiu he began to think about the potential for using locally sourced earth minerals as a source of pigment for making paint. This was a pivotal moment where Scott came to realize that instead of making paints for other artists that he could share his knowledge through educational workshops enabling others to make their own paints with mineral pigments.
After returning to Portland in 2003, Scott connected with the cultural lifeways program of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde where he worked for five years with tribal members on how to source and use local pigments for making paints that were used in the creation of art. The focus was to regenerate the use of mineral materials within the traditional ceded lands of their indigenous ancestors. Over the years, Scott was able to find a variety of mineral colors throughout the Pacific Northwest and incorporate them into paints that were used in both traditional and contemporary artistic practices by the local tribal community.
In 2009, Scott moved to Albuquerque New Mexico to attend the Masters of Landscape Architecture program at the University of New Mexico. During his time studying landscape architecture Scott continued to expand his ability to understand and read the landscape through the use of maps and GIS technology. Today, Scott combines all of these backgrounds and experiences to better understand the role of nature and culture in the creation of art and place.
Scott relocated back to Taos, New Mexico in 2020 where he has brought his passion and knowledge as an artist, educator, and as Pigment Hunter to create a space that celebrates the culture of color in a world where we are witnessing a shift back to living in partnership with nature. The vision is to create an educational environment for workshops, a gallery space for exhibiting art infused with the natural world, and an artist in residence program for other artists who want to live and create art that embodies an intimate relationship and sensitivity to place.