`latex` and `pdflatex` produce different colors given the same TikZ picture

Question

Consider the following LaTeX manuscript featuring a TikZ picture* containing an empty, red-bordered node placed at the picture's origin.

\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{tikz}
\begin{document}
    \tikz \path[draw=red] (0,0) node[draw] {};
\end{document}

When this manuscript is compiled with pdflatex the result is a pdf file with the following picture of a red square, as expected:

However, when the same manuscript is compiled with latex the result is a dvi file with the following picture of a black square:

When the node is replaced by a line segment:

\tikz path[draw=red] (0,0) -- (1,0);

both pdf and dvi look the same, showing a red line segment, as expected:

Why does latex draw a black square?

---

* This picture was the subject of this post, which may or may not be related to the present question; I suspect that it is, but I don't know for sure, hence the separate question.

Answer 1

This is basically a bug in the default PGF backend driver for DVI (pgfsys-dvips), and as such, it should be reported using https://sourceforge.net/p/pgf/bugs/.

Answer 2

as latex/tikz gurus find out your problem is caused by bug, but as workaround until bug will be eliminated you can use my suggestion in the first comment:

\documentclass{article} 
\usepackage{tikz} 
\begin{document} 
\tikz \path (0,0) node[draw=red] {}; 
\end{document}

apparently my claim, that is my code more correct then yours, is wrong. thank to Ulrike Fischer for pointing me to my mistake.