When Scars Speak: Contemporary Artist Reba Kittredge Tyson’s Tribute to Survival
- 7 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
In the work of contemporary artist Reba Kittredge Tyson, the human body serves as a site of memory and witness. Through her figurative paintings, she memorializes scars, transforming them into enduring marks of survival, resilience, and lived experience. Each painting carefully balances observation and interpretation, preserving the specificity of the body while acknowledging the weight and meaning carried by each scar. Tyson’s work positions these marks not as imperfections but as evidence of life lived, quiet signs that consistently bear witness to endurance and presence.
"Megan, Bed Stuy 2025", oil on canvas, 30x24"
Q: Let’s start with a fun icebreaker: If a scar were a character in a movie, would it be the hero, the narrator, or the plot twist, and why?
A: I think the scar could be the sidekick, someone the hero picks up along the way. The sidekick reveals the vulnerabilities of the hero; they learn and grow and come out stronger together. Every sidekick is a bit of a pain sometimes.
Q: Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you came to be an artist?
A: My parents are very supportive art appreciators, and I was incredibly fortunate to always have access to art materials and art classes. My older sister is a talented, working artist who helped me see that this was a possible path. I started oil painting in high school and received my BFA from NYU. In college, I experimented with a variety of mediums, my concentration was actually in photography, but I’ve always come back to painting.
Q:In your ongoing series documenting scars on the human body, what comes first for you: the visual form of the scar or the story behind it?
A: I am very interested in the experiences of the people in my paintings. I don’t want to pry, but I do ask questions about their injury and how they feel about it. Sometimes, when someone sends me a photograph of an injury that is really striking, I will immediately think of how I can paint it, but usually my first step is to ask the person about what happened. The story doesn’t officially make it into the final piece, but it does give me a lens through which I consider the painting. Usually, some time passes before I revisit the reference and think about it visually.
Q: Â How do you balance realism with interpretation when depicting something as specific and personal as a scar?
A: I try to get the shape of the person’s body correct, and the rest is more open for interpretation. I want the person to be able to recognize themselves. In the other aspects of the painting, I get to have fun and experiment with the colors or what I include in the backgrounds, but I want to do the subject justice and depict their injury somewhat accurately.
Q: What responsibility do you feel when translating someone else’s lived experience onto canvas?
A: It all becomes incredibly personal, staring at someone’s body and spending so much time thinking about them. My feeling of responsibility can shift depending on the relationship I have with the person I am painting and the nature of the injury. There are injuries that are absolutely brutal, some that are more lighthearted, and some that are beautifully symbolic, like a cesarean scar that came from bringing life into the world. All of these injuries are a part of being human, and that is what I am exploring, but the weight of representing some experiences can be heavier than others. Q:  For viewers who might initially feel discomfort or sadness when viewing these scars, how do you hope they eventually come to understand it?
A: Feeling discomfort and sadness are valid reactions to seeing someone injured or distressed. The beauty of art is that it reflects the viewer back at themselves. A painting is only a jumping-off point for someone’s own interpretation. I personally find hope, strength, and determination in the stories of the people I have painted, and a little appreciation for the absurdity of life. But these paintings are depictions of pain, which is understandably a loaded feeling for people.
Q: Â Looking ahead, what questions or ideas are still calling your attention, and where do you see this body of work going next?
A: The collaborative nature of this series means that I am always confronted with new questions and new ways of working. I am always looking for new experiences to paint and different types of bodies that can be part of this series. I get to experiment in each painting, whether it be with color or styles of painting, choosing to render details tighter or looser depending on the scenario. I am lucky that this project is seemingly endless. I am also always working on paintings outside of this series, so my body of work is expanding in multiple directions.
Reba Tyson’s paintings function as quiet memorials. They mark time, endurance, and presence, refusing to aestheticize pain or diminish its complexity. In choosing to paint scars, Tyson commits to a practice that values attentiveness and responsibility, preserving what the body has carried rather than asking it to move on.
As her practice continues to evolve, her work contributes to a broader conversation within contemporary art about representation, vulnerability, and the ethics of looking. These paintings stand not as explanations, but as records, honoring survival through sustained attention to the human form.
To see more of Reba Kittredge Tyson’s incredible work and stay updated on her latest projects, be sure to follow her on Instagram and visit her website!
Disclaimer:
The views, opinions, and perspectives expressed by artists featured, interviewed, or presented on this site are solely those of the respective individuals. They do not necessarily reflect the views, beliefs, or opinions of Selfless Art Gallery, its staff, or affiliates.