Scott Everingham’s painting “Pilgrimage” is one of two of the Chatham native’s works featured on the TV drama “Suits.”
In the blink of an eye, Scott Everingham’s work went from being known by thousands to being seen by millions.
But don’t expect that to change things for the Chatham native whose art is being featured in the popular television show “Suits.”
Two of Everingham’s abstract paintings “Open Paddock” and “Pilgrimage,” figure prominently in the offices of the fictional Pearson Hardman law firm in New York City upon which the series is based.
“I received an e-mail from my dealer that NBC was looking for large abstract contemporary work,” he said. “They were looking for one painting but took two and purchased them both.”
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Everingham said it’s unusual for productions to buy paintings. “Usually the works are just rented for a month or two for a fraction of their value.”
When the show, now in its fourth season, completes its run, the art is archived or given to someone involved in the production.
“Even though they own the paintings, NBC isn’t allowed to use them in other shows,” he said. “The contract is very specific.”
He said he still isn’t sure if NBC came looking for his works specifically or if the work fit into the producers’ sense of what should be represented.
Everingham said friends noticed the paintings on television before he did.
“Some people contacted me that they had seen it so I had to track it down.”
An instructor at the noted Ontario College of Art and Design and at the University of Waterloo, Everingham has been based in Toronto for several years.
While he’s always been creative, Everingham was actually more interested in music than art as a teenager. “I played drums, was a writer and an artist of sorts in high school.”
After graduating, he took a year off and lived upstairs in the building that now houses Retro Suites.
“I started applying for school and once I got in I worked hard because I liked it. Art became my focus and it turned into an all-out drive,” he said.
Although he calls painting “the best job in the world,” it remains hard work.
“I think anything that you put yourself into is hard work, but that’s what makes it rewarding,” he said.
Although he enjoys living in downtown Toronto, part of him would love to have a “tiny house in the country.
“If I could maintain my professional connections and have the solitude, it would be ideal. It’s always a balancing act.”
Everingham said it is crucial for a young artist to have a base of support.
“As an artist, you need to grow, you need to build a network of curators and people who will help you navigate and learn about what you’re doing and how to do it.
“I’m downtown; my wife works here; I’m four blocks away from my gallery; it’s an important time for me.”
At 35, he’s still classified as an “emerging artist” a phrase he jokes he will hold onto as long as he can.
He said being an artist is “a long road. As with anything you want to do, you need to be persistent and patient. If you reach too hard, you reach too far. You have to understand the levels of growth, be patient and work hard.”
The holder of masters and bachelors degrees in fine art, he says although people may think of him as having “made it,” he doesn’t.
“I’m happy when I can sell pieces to TD and RBC, but that doesn’t mean I’m willing to say that my career is a success,” he said. “It’s what I can create next that moves me.”
Having had work displayed in shows across North America and in Europe, he’s looking forward to shows next year at the Tom Thomson Art Gallery (Museum) in Owen Sound and the Patrick Mikhail Gallery in Ottawa.
“Open Paddock,” a painting by Chatham native Scott Everingham, is featured in the TV show “Suits.”
