Seeing Red Differently
by Regina Sabiston
(click the pictures for larger versions)
I didn't always love the color red, but over time I grew to appreciate it. Seeing red can mean many things to many people. It is often associated with anger, love, confidence, and excitement. As I mature, I realize how excited I get when I see the color red, in all its many shades.
In this painting I used red to express the beauty we see and the excitement we feel when we watch the sun setting. A friend of mine took this photograph in Montana, not in this color, but in shades of pink. I asked her if I could use it as a reference photo and she graciously agreed. Thanks H. Lee Holcomb.
I loved the calm feeling of the photograph and thought it would make a great painting, but when I finished it in pink, I realized that it was lacking something and no matter what I tried I couldn't get it to express how I felt about it. Someone suggested that I paint it in red and that's exactly what I did. I felt so much better about this piece when I finally finished painting it for the second time.
It has been admired many times. It has also been criticized. That's what people do when they attend shows. What one will absolutely adore, another will comment about it's faults. It's fun standing behind people and listening to what they have to say about artworks. Okay, I'll admit that it's sometimes painful, but in general it's fun.
Because my art name is Reggie Sabiston, people are always looking for the man that did "this" painting. They are often surprised that the artist is a woman. I explain how my name is really Regina (pronounced Regeena with a hard g) and that because people confuse it with the pronunciation of the city of Regina, it is almost always pronounced incorrectly so when someone gave me the nickname, Reggie, while I was working as a part-time waitress and attending university classes, it stuck. I have been called Reggie ever since.
Well as you can see, this painting is very red and it's not perfect. You'll either like it or not. As an artist, I want you to react to the painting...good or bad. It's the paintings that stop us in our tracks that are most successful, in my opinion. Sure they may not be perfect, but they make a statement. Next time your at an art show...take note and I'm sure you will agree, but then again there will be those who might say..."I liked it better in pink."
