New London, Conn. - Although I was painting/American Studies/art history major at Colby, and studied at the Rhode Island School of Design Summer School and Tyler School of Art in Rome, I am a self-taught sculptor. However, while at art school, I spent a great deal of time drawing from live models, which has given me a good sense of the human figure. My father is also an artist, and for a time, was a professional cabinet
maker, while my mother has always refinished furniture. So it was natural for me to work in wood, which I love.
A year and a half ago, I received my Ph.D in philosophy from Boston University and currently, I am a Visiting Assistant Professor in philosophy at Connecticut College, in New London, Connecticut. Studying philosophy has allowed me to ignore some of the trends and pressures of the "art world" with a good conscience; I have no qualms about being representational.
A few years ago, I studied philosophy in Vienna, Austria for six months, and I spent most of last year in Osnabrueck, Germany, studying Heidegger. But I also continued to sculpt; I was particularly inspired by the Medieval wood carvings that are so easy to find in Europe.
They have a certain quiet dignity and crafstmanship that I really admire; they capture the human condition via the figure. This is what I try to do.
Along with the works in progress on my web page, I am currently working on a small ship's figurehead. The wood is from Africa, and is a scrap from the Amistad project (which
is being carried out in Mystic, CT). This should be done in about a month.

Stefanie Rocknak
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