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Randy Regier
Hatteberg's People
Reporter: Larry Hatteberg
August 1, 2004 - On Hatteberg’s People in Abilene, Kansas a unique artist struggles to keep his art alive while providing for his family. You’ll see Randy Regier playing toys but he’s not. He’s actually playing with out minds. His art is deep and controversial, but always thought provoking.
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“I don’t know how other people perceive me. I really don’t. I’m not sure that I do want to know. It’s hard for me to have just a simple conversation about basic things and I regret that.”
Working at all hours in his garage, Abilene resident Randy Regier is an artist whose mission is to make the rest of us think…surrounded by stuff he needs, he uses toys in an unusual way to advance his social commentary.
“There is a complexity in the way I commutate and the way I function that turns some people away and attracts some people.”
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When you read about Randy on-line, you’ll find words like ‘creative’, ‘restless’, ‘searching’, ‘unconventional’, ‘challenging’, but with ‘wit’, ‘thoughtfulness’ and biting ‘social criticism’.
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“I think it would behoove the human race to become more critical ‘thinkers’.”
When you look at his toys, you quickly understand why his art is so different. In love with the period of the ‘40’s through the ‘70’s, his designs look to be from that era. This looks to be an electric train set. It’s not.
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| “I remember how bad I wanted a toy train as a kid. This set all assembles and there is luggage that fits in these little ‘parts’ boxes. And there is a man sitting there. It is electric. There is a cord with a switch. So you turn it on. There is no train. |
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| Confusion sets in so you return to the box label and it says there in very fine print ‘Man waiting for a train set”. And that’s what it is by
Futtili-Toy. He (the man) is waiting for train. There never was a train. There will never be a train.
In Randy’s world, the toy represents the disappointment of advertising and the sin of not reading the fine print. |
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Or how about this submarine. Randy became concerned over ‘war’ toys and what they ‘really’ mean.
“I hate what war toys symbolize, that war is a game. As a child we’re accustomed to acquainting war with play. Yet none of the war toys that I ever had ever reflected the reality of war. |
And that he believes is a mistake. In this piece of art, a toy submarine that any child would love.
“Visually, it’s exciting, it’s interesting. As a child, if I came across this I would want it so badly, I do anything to play with it.”
But, plug it in, Turn it on…and it kills you. It is after all, a ‘war’ toy.
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“Yeah war is a terrible thing to think about. Exactly right!”
Though his ‘art’ comes biting social commentary.
“War is a terrible thing to think about….exactly right.”
He lives the life of the artist, money always a problem, but jobs like delivering furniture support him and gives him optimism.
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| “I delivered some furniture to Hope, Kansas and a little old lady asked me what I wanted to do. I said I didn’t want to deliver furniture all my life. She kinda laughed and patted the door on the delivery truck and said ‘Well, there is always hope in Kansas’. |
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Larry’s Note:
Randy’s Regier’s toy of social commentary have been seen in major galleries throughout the
U.S. |
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