She attended The Study, a private school for girls, for three years and later became one of the first students at the École des beaux-arts de Montréal in 1924.

[3][4] After study in London at the Slade School of Art, she returned to her home city, where in 1928 she married the poet and law professor F. R.

[7] Scott's career began with landscapes, followed by still life,[8] then by cityscapes which reflected her social concerns.

In the 1930s, Scott was active in anti-fascist movements and the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, which her husband had helped found.

She also taught art to disadvantaged children as part of an organization set up by her close friend Norman Bethune.