Check Out Bruce Stebner’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bruce Stebner.

Hi Bruce, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

Bruce Stebner has been called a Renaissance Man. Drolly claiming to be born with crayons in hand, his first memories are drawing on rolls of paper spread across the length of the living room floor. By the age of 13, he dreamed of becoming a studio potter. With barely his BFA from Kent State University in hand, the Western Reserve Historical Society hired him to expand the pottery shop at Hale Farm and Village. Two years later, he opened his own production ceramic studio, which occupied his creative life for over thirty years. Concurrently, he spent the last decade of the twentieth century painting murals in private residences across the eastern half of the US.

Today, Bruce dedicates his energy to managing his painting studio. His paintings follow the path of intimiste painters of the early twentieth century, finding beauty in mundane moments and ordinary objects of life. Stebner canvases are inspired by the simple beauty the artist finds in his own home and garden as well as rustic corners he inhabits in France several times a year. Stebner’s paintings are prized for their energetic strokes, sense of light, and use of color. The doors, chairs, and stairs of his charming, yet enigmatic interior paintings become ethereal symbols of Life’s opportunities, challenges, and repose.

Stebner has been featured in Country Living, Country Home, the Chicago Tribune, and regional newspapers. His work has been sold in galleries nationwide: Atlanta, Chicago, Columbus, Santa Fe and New York(Museum of American Folk Art), as well as his own studio in Akron, Ohio. Stebner had his first one-man-show in both New York City and the Southwest of France in 2015. His art has been included in exhibitions at regional art museums, including the Mansfield Art. Center and the Butler Museum of Art. Stebner served as president of the Akron Society of Artists for six years, where he was honoured with Emeritus status in 2023.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I taught myself to make salt-glazed pottery in a wood-fired kiln that I build at Hale Farm and Village in Bath, Ohio, where I worked from 1975 to 1977. I left when I had the opportunity to become an art teacher. During that seven year stint, my two children were born and I began making pottery in my home studio on weekends to supplement my income. There was no internet. Sales grew through biannual studio sales and a circuit of art shows across the eastern United States. I moved to a country home built in the 1820’s, which we filled with American antiques. By the mid 1980’s, my pottery business expanded to include wholesales to shops and galleries across the US. The romance of my work and life was featured in local, regional and national publications.

But by the end of the 1980’s, both my marriage and my interest in salt-glaze pottery had run their course. I struggled to maintain my career, while learning to be a single, gay parent. The stars aligned. An acquaintance became a life partner and new parent to my children. I found new artistic expression in making decorative, European-inspired, tin-glazed faience pottery, which satisfied both my childhood interest in drawing and pottery.

Having run my studio essentially single handedly, I took the chance of employing a small group of artisans to assist in production in the mid 90’s. My hope was twofold: production would expand and I could concentrate on promoting the line as well as developing new forms and designs. It proved to be the only time in my life I felt like I ” had to go to work” every morning. My energy was consumed putting out employees’ personal and professional fires. In short, I was not as good a boss as I had been a teacher.

As employees moved on, I slid back into happily being the artist, myself and adjusting my client list accordingly. Lesson learned.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
After thirty years as a ceramic artist, I was commissioned to sculpt a collection of architectural corbels for beams is a Great Room. Each one featured a human face, inspired by the client’s family members. That success led to personalised murals and decorative painting throughout that house. She became my Murphy Brown and I her Eldin Berneky. This was the door to a ten year stint painting murals across the eastern United States. Some years later, the same client asked me to paint some canvases for her of her home. Though they were rejected, it opened the door for me to become then oil painter I am today!

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I am at the joyful place in life where I paint as I like and attract clients who appreciate my style. I now have time to pursue being included in art museum exhibitions. That was something I did not have the luxury to do while making a living selling my art.

Pricing:

• paintings range from $200 to $6,000

Contact Info:

• Website: https://brucestebner.com
• Instagram: brucestebner
• Facebook: Bruce Stebner, artist