‘It’s A Fine Life’

“I’m 88 years old. I still love to paint, so I’m in the studio every day,” says Chuck Sabatino, whose paintings have been wowing art aficionados for almost four decades. “I also love to golf with friends and am not very good at it. They tell me, ‘Stay home and paint!’”

While Sabatino loves golfing, he loves painting more. That’s why he’s in the studio at his home in north Scottsdale, Arizona, seven days a week. He arrives there at 9 a.m. each day and works until about 2 p.m., following that with reading and doing research for future paintings. “I read most everything I can find about Native tribes of the 1800s,” he says. “The 1880s seem to be when they were most active.”

Sabatino’s paintings feature a myriad of Native American artifacts, from pottery, beaded moccasins, and an 1885 Cheyenne tobacco bag to headdresses, soldier shirts, and pottery.

Read the full article in the January/February 2024 issue.