"See with your eyes, hear with your ears, nothing is hidden" - Tenkei

My photography represents the crystallization of a lifelong interest in the visual arts combined with an ongoing fascination of the natural world we live in. I am also an avid student of the human condition, particularly the aspects of human cognizance, the nature of thought and how we process our perceptions. With no formal training, I have merged all these aspects into a unique perspective of the visual world.

My photography initially began as a natural extension of my backcountry backpacking trips. I am an avid outdoorsman and enjoy kayaking, canoeing, backpacking, hiking, winter mountaineering and just being outside. On a week long wilderness trip the days and scenery have a way of blending into a running emotional state of wonder and inner peace as one adjusts to the rhythm of a place. I discovered photography was an ideal way to bring some part of that experiences back to civilization with me. As I learned more about photography as a medium, I discovered that I had a particular way of seeing things that translates directly into the process of creating an image with a camera. I have a very critical approach to my own work and my understanding of the process has continued to be refined and improved, my success in conveying my perception in the form of a finished image also continues to grow. The result of my very critical approach to my own work has been a high level of interest and a series of awards over the years.

One of the factors that plays into the unique character of my work is that my grounding inspiration comes not from other photographers, but from more traditional artists, such as Monet and Rembrandt. Maxfield Parrish and Andrew Wyeth are two other painters that have had a major influence on my work. All used radically different techniques but have in common a particular use of light and form that I find can be translated effectively to the medium of photography with careful thought, observation and preparation. I expect a lifetime of effort to go into mastering the techniques and vision required to obtain my artistic goals.

In addition, one of the things that I have discovered is how most people go through their lives without actually 'seeing' the world around them. Most of us never see past the surface of a thing or place, and register even very little of that. Such is the nature of our busy, modern lives. This sad reality is only worsened by the constant onslaught of ever present media constantly vying for our attention. It is one of the artist’s chosen tasks to break through this shell and draw the viewer deeper into a place or closer to a particular object or into a specific moment. A successful connection with the viewer will always evoke an emotional response to the subject. Sometimes pleasant, sometimes thoughtful, sometimes uncomfortable, but a connection must be made. This is the sole hallmark of successful artwork. All else is secondary.

I am, admittedly, one of the world’s worst marketers. I am far more interested in the creative process than the selling of the results. Just the same, as I have increasingly made my work more public, I have received numerous awards, and began to participate in numerous art shows and gallery exhibits and invitationals. Covid has, unfortunately interrupted that process significantly, with the closure of art shows and galleries, including two new, active gallery exhibitions of which I was a part in 2020, but with my recent relocation to rural Pennsylvania I am looking to get the creative process fully engaged again.

An award-winning freelance artist formerly based on Long Island, Jim Sabiston began his visual arts career as a painter, but with the advent of the digital camera, he left painting behind and committed himself to the art of photography. An experimenter by nature, Jim Sabiston is con-stantly exploring variations in subject, technique and style. As such, his work does not lend itself to easy categorization. With a style rooted in minimalistic realism, his style and subjects are al-most infinitely varied. Building on an original artistic foundation as a painter and an intimate study of photographic giants such as Stieglitz and Steichen, along with painters such as Andrew Wyeth and Winslow Homer, Jim Sabiston's current work executes a marriage of photography and painting mediums into highly unique, print oriented series sets that play to the strengths of both mediums. Recent work has been oriented towards East End Long Island subjects in his growing ‘Island’ series and ‘Water Spirits’, a unique study of natural forms, structure and light. His most recent explorations focused on the farms of Long Island’s North Fork. After his recent relocation to rural Pennsylvania, it is the local rural landscapes that are the subject of his new work. Jim Sabiston’s work has received awards from National Geographic Explorer magazine, the Adiron-dack Mountain Club, the Islip Arts Council, the Sayville Chamber of Commerce, the Westhamp-ton Beach Chamber of Commerce, Gallery North, East End Arts, the Art League of Long Island and the Huntington Arts Council. His work has been published in various books, magazines, and is part of many private collections across the country.

“Spring into Collecting - Group Exhibition”, Alex Ferrone Gallery, May-July 2019

"Winter Wine”, Solo Exhibit, Clovis Point Vinyard, February thru March 2019

"The Art of Storytelling”, Long Island Photo Gallery, January - February 2019

"Discovering Long Island”, Huntington Arts Council Main St. Gallery, Dec. - Jan. 2019

"Small Bites: Small Works”, Alex Ferrone Gallery, November, 2018 - January, 2019

“Grand Minimalism”, Long Island Photo Gallery, August-September 2018

“Escapes”, William Ris Gallery, June 2018

“Spring into Collecting - Print Edition”, Alex Ferrone Gallery, May-July 2018

"Wanderlust”, Long Island Photo Gallery, Opening May 8th 2018

“Spring into Collecting”, Invitational show at the Alex Ferrone Gallery, April-May 2018

"Winter Solstice: From Darkness to Light”, Huntington Arts Council Main St Gallery, Dec. - Jan., 2018

"Water - Small Works 2017”, Alex Ferrone Gallery, November 25th, 2017 to January 7th, 2018

"Jim Sabiston and Michael McLaughlin”, The Rosalie Dimon Gallery, May thru July, 2017

“Chromogenic”, Watermill Museum Gallery, East End Photographers Group Show, July 2017

“Cinema”, Ashawagh Hall Gallery, East End Photographers Group, June 3rd to June 11, 2017

"Essential Water”, National Jurored Photography Exhibition , Art League of LI, May-June, 2017

“ The Human Condition” Main Street Gallery, Huntington Arts Council, February 2017

"La Fleur”, Southampton Cultural Center, August 1st to August 29th, 2017

Recent Awards:

2019 - Art League of Long Island ‘Art in the Park’: Award of Exellence

2018 - Gallery North ‘Annual Outdoor Show: Best in Show, Overall

2018 - Gallery North ‘Annual Outdoor Show’: Best in show, Photography

2018 - Art League of Long Island ‘Members Exhibit’: Award of Exellence

2017 - Westhampton Beach ‘Mary O. Fritchie’ Annual Art Show: Best in Show, Photography

2017 - Art League of Long Island ‘Essential Water’: Honorable Mention

2017 - Huntington Art Council 'The Human Condition’: Best in Show

2016 - East End Arts 5th National Show: Second Place, Photography

2015 - Gallery North 50th Anniversary Juried Show: First Place, Photography

2014 - Islip Arts Council/Seatuck Juried Photography Show, "Local Color”: First Place

2014 - Westhampton Beach Mary O. Fritchie Juried Art Show: "Outstanding New Artist"