Regnier, Ireland

Ireland Regnier, Professor Emeritus of Visual Arts, retired in 1988.   “Painting and music have been with me my whole life! It has formed who I am today!” –I. Regnier

Growing up in Texarkana, Arkansas, Ireland began painting and playing the guitar and piano at a very young age. Mr. Regnier credits his mother for supporting him throughout his pursuit of the arts. Right out of high school at the age of 18, Mr. Regnier was drafted into the infantry during World War II. He fought in New Guinea and the Philippines and then served on a submarine base during the occupation of Japan. During the war, his mother sent him a shoebox filled with paints, brushes and a rolled canvas. He made room in his knap sack for this treasure and began to paint and draw at every opportunity. Although hard, he is thankful his art and music provided him an oasis during those horrendous years of war.

Returning to the United States, the Bronze Star decorated veteran set his sights on a life filled with art and music. While Mr. Regnier waited for the fall session to begin college, he played baseball and during that summer a scout for the St. Louis Cardinals invited him to play for the team. The offer was enticing, but his ideal was to hold a paintbrush instead of a baseball bat. He began attending the Kansas City Art Institute and completed his schooling in three years by attending classes day and night and throughout the summers. He found work drafting and rendering for several architectural firms and later began to teach art to college students. After teaching classes at St. Petersburg Junior College, he began teaching art to architectural students at Clemson College (University) in 1961 and retired in 1988.

During his long tenure at Clemson, Mr. Regnier also taught on sabbaticals in Mexico and London. He has paintings on permanent display in the Greenville County Art Museum, Greenville, South Carolina and the South Carolina State Capital in Columbia. His work also has been shown in the Liz Cox Art Gallery, Pendleton, South Carolina and Lee Art Gallery on the Clemson University campus and has been exhibited in various worldwide exhibits. Ireland also has works on display at the Emeritus College Gallery.