Artist In Residence

Painter Eleanor Scott Davis fills her family's Raleigh, North Carolina, home with color, pattern, and an evolving collection of art

- ELIZABETH HUTCHISON HICKLIN

IF YOU DIDN'T know Eleanor Scott Davis was an artist before entering the four-bedroom home she shares with her husband and three daughters (ages 9, 7, and 5), you would figure it out as soon as you crossed the threshold of the colorful, light-filled abode. Bold abstracts, delicate sketches, large-scale still lifes, portraits, and landscapes pop off the walls and give the space a bright, gallery-like feel. "With every collection I release of my own, we try to add a new piece from a different artist," says Davis, an abstract expressionist who is inspired by all the chaos and joy of motherhood.

Her work inevitably bleeds into her interior design aesthetic, jumping off her canvases to inform the furniture, light fixtures, textiles, and finishes that she chooses to decorate her family's nest. As in her paintings, the purposeful layers of color and texture create an overall look and feel inside the home that is greater than the sum of their individual parts. It is sophisticated yet inviting, playful yet smart. The interiors balance an artist's eye for good design with her busy young family's contemporary lifestyle. Here's how Davis took on her largest and most encompassing project yet.

Mix Antiques and Contemporary Art