Why is the internet talking about a Clovis butcher? The offbeat art of ‘Scott in Meat’

Bethany Clough
·6 min read
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Uniquely is a Fresno Bee series that covers the moments, landmarks and personalities that define what makes living in the Fresno area so special.

Clovis shoppers who are in the know have a little tradition when grocery shopping at WinCo Foods on Ashlan Avenue.

After they walk through the “Wall of Values” at the front of the store, they take a left turn and look to see the latest art from “Scott in Meat.”

Right there above the meat cooler with the discounted $1.18 a pound chicken wings is his handiwork: An elaborate 7.5-foot by 3-foot chalk mural that the butcher changes monthly.

“Scott in Meat” is Scott Bolter, a 42-year-old Fresno butcher and family man whose art has caught the attention of a corner of the internet and customers.

“They just stop and look, and they’re like, ‘Who draws this?’” said Tania Rodriguez, an employee overseeing the self checkout line last week.

Customers routinely take photos of his art and post it on Facebook. There are several Reddit.com threads about him, including “Scott in Meat does it again!” and “Anyone see the new Scott in meat drop?”

Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, has a following on social media for the chalk art he creates at WinCo Foods in Clovis, where he works in the meat department.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, has a following on social media for the chalk art he creates at WinCo Foods in Clovis, where he works in the meat department.

Comments include:

  • “My son loves checking out his artwork every time we go to winco!” said TerrySkee.

  • “If you don’t know, he’s like Fresno’s own Bansky!” said atomicLantern.

  • “I admit that I will often stop by the Ashlan Winco whenever in the area to see your art while picking up my groceries!” said InFresno.

You don’t have to go to WinCo to see his art. He shares it all — and animates his art — on Instagram account @scottinmeat and on TikTok.

Bolter is not a celebrity. His drawings haven’t gone viral. He’s not even a professional artist. Some shoppers stroll right by his art without noticing.

He’s just a butcher with an artistic talent and an unusual place to display it. He and his art are a little slice of Clovis life that bring a smile and a moment of joy to customers.

“I just want it to be something positive that people walking by can see,” he said. “It’s great to get some of that creativity out.”

And yes, everyone calls him Scott in Meat. It even says that on his name tag.

The art

The drawings are done in pastels and chalk — and we’re not talking images of ground beef on sale. Bolter tries to inject fun into his drawings.

His most recent was the ancient Egyptian experience of shopping at WinCo. Figures in linen clothing shop the store, scanning their fruit on the modern self checkout.

And since Bolter likes to go above and beyond, hieroglyphics accurately spell out “WinCo.” He downloaded a translation app to do it.

Bolter often incorporates himself into the drawings. Look for the man with the short, dark beard. He’s pictured as an ancient Egyptian version of a butcher at work in bare feet in his most recent drawing (clearly, they didn’t have the same safety regulations back then).

Another drawing featured his take on the “Evolution of Man,” the series of images that starts with a primate walking on all fours and evolving into an upright human. Only in Bolter’s drawing, the last figure is a man pushing a WinCo shopping cart.

His sister teaches anthropology, so that one was a nod to her.

There have also been July 4-themed drawings with American flags and eagles, and the more serious image of Marines raising the American flag on Iwo Jima.

His bosses had him paint a permanent mural near the store exit of a sunset that doubles as a memorial for two employees who died.

But Bolter’s magnum opus so far was the April art. It featured an Easter egg with a QR code inside it. The code was comprised of more than a thousand tiny hand-chalked squares that took so many hours that Bolter vowed to never do a QR code again.

Customers scanned the code with their phones and it took them to Bolter’s YouTube channel, with just one video on it.

It was a “Rickroll,” an April Fools’ joke with the internet prank of Rick Astley singing “Never Gonna Give You Up.” The video featured a smiling Bolter standing in front of the chalkboard, with an animated Astley performing in the background.

Kathy Gunn of Fresno takes pictures of Bolter’s art and posts it on Facebook every time she visits the store.

She usually dreads grocery shopping, but then remembers Scott in Meat might have something new. It gives her a reason to go grocery shopping and something fun to do while she’s there, she said.

“How does he even think to do that?” she said of his art. “The detail you can get from playing with chalks, I’m so impressed with it. He’s an amazing guy.”

Bolter started doing the art when his bosses asked for volunteers to draw specials on the board about seven years ago. But drawing ads didn’t last long.

“I wanted to do something different that’s going to catch people’s attention,” he said.

From butcher to artist

Bolter has been working at this store for about 15 years, and with WinCo for 23 years total, usually starting his shift at 5 a.m.

Most of the time, his work as a butcher — or meat cutter, as they’re more often called these days — is done hidden away from the public.

“Cutting meat is like an art in itself,” he said, (though maybe not quite the type you want to watch).

The gear he wears for meat cutting is just as necessary for chalk: A smock, a vinyl apron and rubber shoes keep both blood and the dusty chalk that seems to get everywhere off his clothes.

Drawing took a little getting used because instead of being hidden away in the back, people are watching him and chatting him up.

Each drawing takes two to four hours — “depending on how many people stop and talk to me,” he said.

The artistic talent runs in the family, and Bolter likes to draw with his 12-year-old daughter and his wife. His brother, Stephen Berry, is an artist who regularly displays his watercolors at a gallery in Benecia.

Although a gallery show might be the definition of artistic success, Bolter might get more eyeballs on his art inside the grocery store.

“I have a ton of people walking by and looking at my art every day,” he said. “A lot of artists don’t get that kind of exposure.”

And though he used to cringe when his art was erased each month, now he just gets excited about doing the next one.

“I think there should be more art out there,” he said. “I think it’s cool that people can be shopping at a grocery store and see art.”

Chalk art with an ancient Egyptian theme, created by meat cutter Scott Bolter, is on display at the Clovis WinCo. Better known as Scott In Meat, he often includes himself in his drawings, seen at the bottom left corner.
Chalk art with an ancient Egyptian theme, created by meat cutter Scott Bolter, is on display at the Clovis WinCo. Better known as Scott In Meat, he often includes himself in his drawings, seen at the bottom left corner.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, has generated a following on social media for the chalk art he creates at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he works in the meat department. Pictured is a permanent piece he painted memorializing store employees who have passed away.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, has generated a following on social media for the chalk art he creates at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he works in the meat department. Pictured is a permanent piece he painted memorializing store employees who have passed away.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, holds pieces of chalk he has used to create art at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he works in the meat department.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, holds pieces of chalk he has used to create art at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he works in the meat department.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, included his signature in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics on the chalk art he created at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he also works in the meat department.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, included his signature in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics on the chalk art he created at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he also works in the meat department.
Scott Bolter’s notebook includes sketches for ideas he develops as he creates chalk artwork at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he works in the meat department.
Scott Bolter’s notebook includes sketches for ideas he develops as he creates chalk artwork at WinCo Foods in Clovis where he works in the meat department.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, has generated a following on social media for the chalk art he creates at WinCo Foods in Clovis. Drawings such as this Egyptian-themed piece above a case of meats change monthly.
Scott Bolter, better known as Scott In Meat, has generated a following on social media for the chalk art he creates at WinCo Foods in Clovis. Drawings such as this Egyptian-themed piece above a case of meats change monthly.