Rain Scott is the son of jeweler Raynard Scott (Navajo) and a descendant of Marie Z. Chino of Acoma.  He says that growing up in Arizona, he wanted to learn to make pottery but didn’t have anyone to teach him.  In 2011, he began working with origami, the art of creating objects with folded paper.  From 2013 to 2018, he experimented with the art form and, in 2018, made his first vessel, an Acoma jar.  He calls his style “contemporary indigenous origami”.  Each piece is made from thick paper and creates a corrugated texture.

This piece is entitled “People of the White Rock.”.  Rain says of this piece:

“People of the White Rock” pays homage to our Two Spirit relatives and those who lived before us.  Both inlaid turquoise figures represent two silhouettes.  The one with the sharper lines, I felt, gave a feminine energy, and the rounder one gave a masculine energy.  Both figures symbolize the female and male spirits that live in all of us.  The feathers on top were arranged to look like the morning sun as it peeks over the surrounding mountains around Acoma Pueblo”.

Rain used white 8 1/2 x 11 sheets of paper to make the design.  Each full sheet is folded to make each section! The jar has an elegant form with a high shoulder and elongated neck.  The jar has an elegant form with a round shoulder and elongated neck. The turquoise insets are a subtle but striking addition to the neck of the jar.  He has carved into the paper to create space to attach turquoise stones. The jar has a paper origami lid, and nine macaw feathers are attached to it as part of his design.  Rain keeps on innovating his art form with each new piece!  Believe it or not, there are thousands of pieces of paper used to make this jar! The piece is signed on the bottom, “Rain Scott”.  It’s exciting to have such innovative work in the gallery.  Most recently, Rain’s indigenous origami has been featured in First American Art magazine and Native Art Magazine. 

“I call my work contemporary origami pottery.  I came up with them as I wanted to learn to make traditional pottery.  I never had a teacher to show me how to get the clay or slips.  I was always creative with paper.  I started out with swans and then one day wanted to see how I could make a vase.  It took a lot of experimentation”.  Rain Scott