To view the party in Scott Lewis's Vibrant Mood Swings is to enter the room with X-ray specs on. Not the X-ray specs of comic book lore for although you will see a flash of nipple, or a well-honed muscle bulging through a pair of tights, you will also penetrate deeper, beneath the clothes, beyond the skin, into the sinew of the soul (or more likely, lack of one) into the core being of a mixed bag of characters whose egos override any connection to other humans or the world around them. Like the anatomy books he was enamored with as a child, his characters are exposed, both visually and through the stories that are told throughout this book. Within these pages, you will find the love triangles of circus performers, the self-inflicted angsts of self-centered party-goers, and the tragic showbiz dreams of hometown starlets. The personalities that lie beneath have been irreparably damaged by the pressure to be smarter, wittier, and more beautiful than their peers. Vibrant Mood Swings humorously exposes the conceit, hubris, and vanity among a collection of damaged denizens who live in the worlds created by a truly unique artist in the prime of his creative output.
Scott Lewis was inspired at an early age to draw after receiving a birthday gift of colorful magic markers. Since then, he has never stopped sketching, painting and creating. Fascinated by what lays beneath the surface of the bright, glossy and seemingly happy, Lewis explores these themes in creating the subjects in his paintings and stories. Drawing intricate details and using a wide palette of color, he states, "I want to expose what my characters are thinking, exploring their urges, disappointments and how they see themselves". A friend's comment that "you should write that down" after hearing Lewis describe one of his early paintings led to his evolution as a writer. Scott's art and stories combine to give the viewer a total picture of his vision. Not only known for his paintings, Scott Lewis is the co-creator, writer and host of the legendary public access show, "The Scott and Gary Show", a tongue in cheek mash-up of 1960's TV dance parties. The show featured 1980's indie bands such as the Beastie Boys and the Butthole Surfers performing live in the genesis of their careers. Retrospectives of the program have screened at The Museum of the Moving Image, New York Underground Film Festival, Woodstock Film Festival and other film festivals across the country. Scott's solo exhibits have included the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts, PhilaMOCA, The Chocolate Factory, Buzzer Thirty, Jungle Science and Index Art.