This week’s PAA Member Spotlight goes to Regina Murphy, a Paseo artist who has been painting for over 50 years! Originally from Tyler Town, Mississippi, Regina became an Okie in 1945 and has worked and exhibited in the Paseo for the majority of that time. Regina also served as treasurer on the Paseo Arts Association board for over a decade. Regina has helped transform the Paseo, which was the first in Oklahoma to hold a gallery walk, into the district it is today. “When we first started the gallery walks, it was just an idea one of the members had,” Regina says. “But it just kept growing and growing and growing! Now everyone is copying the Paseo with their walks.”
You can find Regina working on and exhibiting her paintings at Studio Six, an eclectic working studio and gallery in the heart of the Paseo. In 1994, Regina partnered with five other artists to establish Studio Six. Today, Regina works alongside artist Sue Moss Sullivan, one of the other founding members of Studio Six, as well as artist Michelle Metcalfe, Regina’s daughter. It was Michelle who encouraged Regina to attend painting lessons with her, which resulted in Regina pursuing painting seriously for the first time.
Regina’s advice to up-and-coming artists? “Keep doing your craft. Practice, practice, practice, and Show when you can.”
Over the years, Regina has experimented with a variety of styles and mediums including realism, abstract, acrylics, oil, collage and mixed media, but her passion lies in painting. “I used to be very realistic with my work,” Regina explains. “But I’ve just decided I want to play—do something different, be a little more contemporary.”
BY LINDSEY CASTOR
PAA Intern