Judith Scott (artist)

Judith Scott
Artworks by Judith Scott
Born	(1943-05-01)1 May 1943 Cincinnati, Ohio
Died	15 March 2005(2005-03-15) (aged 61) Dutch Flat, California
Nationality	American
Movement	Fiber art Outsider art

Judith Scott (May 1, 1943 – March 15, 2005) became an internationally renowned American fiber sculptor. Judith was born into a middle-class family in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1943 along with her fraternal twin sister Joyce. Unlike Joyce, Judith was born with Down Syndrome. During her infancy, Judith suffered from Scarlet Fever, which caused her to lose her hearing, a fact that remained unknown until much later on in her life.

At the age of seven, she was sent to an Ohio state institution where she remained until her sister became her guardian 35 years later. In 1987 Judith was enrolled at the Creative Growth Art Center in Oakland, California which supports people with developmental disabilities. There, Judith discovered her passion and talent for abstract fiber art. An intimate account of Judith Scott’s life, Entwined – Sisters and secrets in the life of artist Judith Scott by her twin sister, Joyce Wallace Scott, will be published by Beacon Press on June 28, 2016.

Judith Scott spent her first seven and a half years at home with her parents, twin sister and older brothers. Although the developmental gap between the two girls was apparent, "the parents consciously sought to treat these youngest members of the family alike."

However, when it was time for the girls to start attending school, Judith was found to be "ineducable." There was only one classroom for children with disabilities, and Judith was not able to pass the verbally-based entrance tests, due to her still undiagnosed deafness.

Consequently, on medical advice, her parents placed Judith in the Columbus State Institution (formerly the Columbus State School), an institution for the mentally disabled, on October 18, 1950. This separation had a profound effect on both twins.

The records from Judith Scott's first few years at the Institution indicate that she had an IQ of 30 (based upon oral testing before her deafness was recognized). For this reason she was denied any training opportunities. Deprived of her twin, Judith became severely alienated, and behavioral problems soon surfaced. Her Clinical Record states that "She does not seem to be in good contact with her environment. She does not get along well with other children, is restless, eats messily, tears her clothing, and beats other children. Her presence on the ward is a disturbing influence." Soon after, she was moved to a smaller state institution at Gallipolis, Ohio.

In 1985, after 35 years of complete separation and lengthy and difficult negotiations, Joyce Scott became her sister’s legal guardian, and brought Judith to live with her in California, a state where all mentally disabled citizens are entitled to an ongoing education.

Judith Scott died of natural causes at her sister's home in Dutch Flat, California, a few weeks short of her 62nd birthday. She outlived her life expectancy at birth by almost fifty years.