By Ed Goldman
COMBINING THE PICTORIAL WITH THE PISCATORIAL AT SCOTT’S SEAFOOD ON THE RIVER
Scott’s Seafood on the River, which has the best Boston clam chowder in the known galaxy, is kicking off a remodel-and-refresh project by presenting art by Stephanie Taylor—and in a while, Christopher DeWees—on the restaurant’s walls—underscoring its dedication to all things pictorial and piscatorial.
For months, Taylor’ whimsical fish seascape, complete with captions and set against a cerulean sea, has filled the patio dining area to mask a wall built by the Army Corps of Engineers to use in its massive levee restoration project. They were originally scheduled to tear down this wall, Mr. Gorbachev, in the middle of September. The goalpost was then moved to the end of 2023. Now those dam bureaucrats are saying it’ll be sometime in March 2024—but don’t contact your bookie just yet.
Anyway, since the wall blocked views of the river, cutting a hefty 80 percent of Scott’s outdoor-events business, Taylor’s mural made the experience well beyond palatable for art lovers and epicureans alike. Meanwhile, owner Alan Irvine and his 130 employees continued to serve the best fish dishes in the region.
Now Taylor has created a new, technicolor mural inside the restaurant that wraps around the walls. Tristan Irvine, the owner’s younger son and an accomplished video/graphic artist, produced a time-lapse mini-movie to show its installation, and Taylor herself. You can see the video by clicking here (be sure to turn on your sound).
In the coming months, works by DeWees featuring the traditional Japanese art of Gyotaku will fill the remaining walls of the main dining room. Gyotaku (魚拓, from gyo “fish” + taku “stone impression”) is the traditional Japanese method of “printing” fish, a practice which dates back to the mid-1800s. Fishermen used this form of nature printing to record their catches (“selfies” were several decades off in the future). It also become an art form of its own.
D Oldham Neath, CBS-13’s “Art Lady” (and sponsor of this column) who owns Archival Gallery and Framing in East Sacramento, has had her shop create nearly 30 frames for the gyotaku. We’ll preview the unveiling in a follow-up ArtBeat.
In the meantime, I recommend you head to Scott’s (did I mention the clam chowder?) for a nourishing look at how an innovative restaurateur breathes new life and ambience into a physical space that was already attractive but now has an added touch of glamour. The restaurant is at 4800 Riverside Boulevard, Sacramento, CA 95822. Phone number is 916.379.5959.