Scot D. Ryersson

Scot D. Ryersson (Born: September 10, 1960 in Suffern, New York) is an award-winning illustrator, graphic artist and writer. In addition to many critiques and essays on film and literature, he is the co-author of the biography Infinite Variety: The Life and Legend of the Marchesa Casati, as well as The Marchesa Casati: Portraits of a Muse.

Ryersson is Co-Director of The Casati Archives, devoted to preserving the artistic and cultural legacy of Luisa Casati. It was founded by Ryersson and Michael Orlando Yaccarino in 1999 upon the original publication of Infinite Variety. In addition to original materials, books and ephemera, this library contains artwork reproductions and photographs of and inspired by Marchesa Casati.

Trained at London’s Chelsea School of Art and Design, for many years Ryersson was a motion picture poster designer in the United States, Canada and Europe. Credits include advertising campaigns for The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Ghost (1990) and Witness (1985), The Changeling (1980), Children of the Corn (1984), Working Girl (1988), She Devil (1989), Pet Sematary (1989) and Presumed Innocent (1990). Ryersson was presented with two Art Directors of London Awards for his poster designs for the British films Evil Under the Sun (1982) and Another Country (1984). The concept poster design for The Silence of the Lambs was voted fifth place of the "Fifty Greatest Film Posters of All Time" by Britain's Empire magazine, while earning sixteenth place for the same accolade by the US publication Premiere in their August 2001 issue.

In 2007, Ryersson began creating a series of mixed-media, found-object art collages called Arcanifacts to further explore his artistic obsessions with the arcane and phantasmagorical.

Articles co-written with Michael Orlando Yaccarino

 * Painted Lady-The Marchesa Casati; Bizarre (UK): 2000.
 * Medusa in Pearls-The Marchesa Casati; aRUDE (U.S.A.): 2001.
 * Passion Player-Gabriele D'Annunzio; aRUDE (U.S.A.): 2001.
 * The Dandy Boys; Bizarre (UK): 2001.
 * Daydream Believer-The Marchesa Casati; The Idler (UK): 2002.
 * Haute Bizarre-Couturier Claudia Scarsella; Art-is-Life (U.S.A.): 2002.
 * Siren of the Century-The Marchesa Casati, Art-is-Life (U.S.A.): 2002.
 * Aesthetic Assassin-Comte Robert de Montesquiou; Art-is-Life (U.S.A.): 2004.
 * Life on the High Seas of Culture-Nancy Cunard; Art-is-Life (U.S.A.): 2004.
 * Luisa and Gabriele; Primo (Belgium): 2005.
 * The Temptations of St. Jean; aRUDE (U.S.A.): 2005.

Misc

 * Fire and Ice: The Life and Films of Brigitte Helm; Filmfax (U.S.A.): No. 84, April/May 2001.
 * Fire and Ice: The Life and Films of Brigitte Helm; Filmfax (U.S.A.): No. 84, April/May 2001.

Literary awards
All are for Infinite Variety: The Life and Legend of the Marchesa Casati (various editions)
 * What We Love Selection, October 2006, Deutsch Vogue (Germany)
 * Best Books Winter 2004/2005, Elegant Lifestyle (U.S.A./UK./Germany)
 * Banner Books of the Year, 2004, Pointe Magazine, (U.S.A.)
 * Top Ten Most Read Books, 2003, Academia News (Italy)
 * Book of the Week Selection, March 3–9, 2003 La Repubblica (Italy)
 * Biography of the Year 2000, First Finalist, Independent Publisher Book Awards (U.S.A.)
 * Bestseller List – ‘Books Everyone Likes,’ 2000, Lambda Literary Foundation (U.S.A.)
 * Paperback of the Week Selection, October 2–8, 2000, Time Out London (UK)
 * Certificate of Merit in Biographical Writing, 2000, Writer’s Digest (U.S.A.)
 * Book of the Year Selection, 1999, Bibel (Sweden)
 * Book of the Year Selection, 1999, Gay Times (UK)
 * Book of the Year Selection, 1999, Sunday Telegraph (UK)