Scott Gelo is an artist who integrates the linear quality and indirect glow of neon tubing into his artwork. For the past nine years, he has focused on utilizing neon along with other media such as aluminum and acrylic when designing sculptures. A Cleveland, Ohio native, Gelo experimented with neon as an art form while pursuing his B.F.A. at Wittenberg University. After graduation, he collaborated with other artists who also focus on the use of neon in their work. He currently resides in Bowie, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, DC, where he has opened his own studio.

Gelo recently began incorporating metal fabrication into his neon sculpture. He finds metal an exciting medium to contrast against the “water-like” neon tubes. He prefers manipulating the molten glass neon tubing by “free-bending,” shaping the tubes without any formal plans to work from. The excitement of only having a few seconds to shape the hot tube into its form for the final sculpture is an appealing practice. A final expression of form is achieved without the option of reworking the materials.