November 2023 Featured Artist
Art Was There From the Very Beginning
An Interview with Lifelong Artist
Sonia Stark
Sonia Posing with Self-Portrait
Oil on Canvas ~ 30 x 20 inches © Sonia Stark Photo Credit: Jill Baratta |
Sonia Stark has always worked in a variety of mediums and styles in acknowledgement of their equal validity and in appreciation of the multi-dimensionality of art. However ostensibly different, her drawings, paintings, photographs, and sculptures are intricately related, both thematically and aesthetically. Sonia is a signature member of the National Association of Women Artists, an organization where she formerly served as president and member of the Board of Directors. She has exhibited her artwork across the United States and has received numerous awards for her paintings, designs and illustrations. Of her portraits, art critic Donald Kuspit wrote, “Every one of Stark’s faces arouses an empathic response from the spectator, every one of her spontaneous gestures is an empathic response to the model’s face.” (Whitehot Magazine, October 2023) "I grew up in a time slot when abstract art was the way to go. But I love it all. I did not use the word ARTIST – it always seemed like too big a word, too much to fulfill, but I was one of them." ~ Sonia Stark |
"For Sonia Stark, Art, and the lifelong pursuit of it, whether in the commercial world or fine arts, has been as natural to her as breathing. It is with great pleasure that we feature her in Sanctuary magazine. Sanctuary’s mission has been to empower and inspire women in all walks of life, and Sonia’s own long and impressive career as a leader in the business world of commercial art as well as her many accomplishments as a mother and a working artist make her a perfect match for us to celebrate."
~ Sandra Bertrand
~ Sandra Bertrand
Untitled 2
Charcoal Wash on Archival Paper ~ 11 x 8.5 inches
© Sonia Stark
Charcoal Wash on Archival Paper ~ 11 x 8.5 inches
© Sonia Stark
Sandra Bertrand, Sanctuary’s travel & culture editor, spoke with Sonia about the many paths she explored during her lifelong journey in the arts.
What are your earliest memories of when art and the urge to create entered your life?
Art was there from the very beginning, like playing, like breathing. I knew as a very young child that was what my life was going to be about, despite being told by counselors that art had no place for a woman. To add insult to injury, the art teachers told me I painted ‘like a guy.’
From those early schooldays, you obviously had the spunk not to be deterred. Were your parents supportive of your nascent talents, or was there one teacher or mentor who stood out in your mind?
No teachers. It was a complex family background. My parents accepted me for who I was. My mother was very supportive. I was in a music and art program in high school, but art was a bit of a blur to them. After my mother remarried (an artist!), he was encouraging, but not really about the fine arts. He was a cartoonist. At sixteen, I went to work. The commercial route was the way to go.
What are your earliest memories of when art and the urge to create entered your life?
Art was there from the very beginning, like playing, like breathing. I knew as a very young child that was what my life was going to be about, despite being told by counselors that art had no place for a woman. To add insult to injury, the art teachers told me I painted ‘like a guy.’
From those early schooldays, you obviously had the spunk not to be deterred. Were your parents supportive of your nascent talents, or was there one teacher or mentor who stood out in your mind?
No teachers. It was a complex family background. My parents accepted me for who I was. My mother was very supportive. I was in a music and art program in high school, but art was a bit of a blur to them. After my mother remarried (an artist!), he was encouraging, but not really about the fine arts. He was a cartoonist. At sixteen, I went to work. The commercial route was the way to go.
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Can you tell us something about taking your first baby steps into a male-dominated commercial art world as a woman?
Being in the position of having to support oneself, I chose the commercial route right out of high school. It wasn’t until much later in life that I went on to college and was accepted into Cooper Union, a very prestigious school. Getting that first job in a commercial studio was the difficult part, since there were almost no women in the ‘bull pen.’ At 17, I got my first position in a three-man graphic studio. I was hired because I was good looking behind the reception desk and behind the drawing board, not because I had an advanced portfolio. I was learning to do mechanicals, cleaning up the place, and running errands. I loved it. I was fired after making too many mistakes and then – the final blow – I left a finished job that was to be delivered to the client on a bus. No explaining that one. But I did learn the trade. Were there any blatant examples of gender discrimination that you can recall? As an adult working for the agencies, gender was always an issue. Example: I was on staff doing mechanicals. A young man came in with no experience and was given layouts to do. It took me some time to get up into that position. After I had the children, I went on to production which did not demand the same impossible hours. |
Listening
Charcoal on Archival Paper ~ 13 x 11 inches © Sonia Stark |
Rift
Oil on Canvas ~ 30 x 40 inches
© Sonia Stark
Oil on Canvas ~ 30 x 40 inches
© Sonia Stark
Let’s talk about that large part of your life. Marriage and children are a huge challenge in any woman’s life, especially when juggling a commitment to a career. How did you juggle all these aspects?
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I had three girls. At the beginning, with the first child, I didn’t work. When the second child was born, I started working freelance three or four days a week. Whatever money I made, most of it went to the sitter, but it was essential I did it. My husband often worked from home and that helped.
Going back to school at Cooper Union led to more freelancing, which then led me to a studio of my own and then to a full business of my own. This was one of the rare woman-led studios in the business. Stark Associates turned into StarkHoffmanKevis, a full- fledged service. Below is a list of only some of my major clients: • IBM • Project House (subcontracted work for most major pharmaceutical houses such as Schering Corp.) • Albert Einstein College of Medicine • Englewood Hospital • Beth Isabell Geriatric Center • Maimonides Hospital • Montefiore Hospital • NYC Department for the Aging You have had a long career in the business of art. Since your retirement, how has your art making been impacted? The commercial brain is very different from the individual artist’s brain. The commercial brain solves the problems of companies and individuals, while the independent artist solves problems of his or her own. |
Reclining Figure
Oil on Canvas ~ 36 x 48 inches © Sonia Stark |
Nude
Oil on Canvas ~ 40 x 30 inches © Sonia Stark |
Can you describe some of the direction your art has taken in terms of style and medium since you have been free to make your own choices?
I’ve always worked in a variety of mediums and styles, acknowledging their equal validity, and the multi-dimensionality of art. However different, my drawings, paintings, photographs, and sculptures are intricately related, thematically in their engagement with the ‘all too human’ – especially the expressive face. I was in a recent show at the Georges Berges Gallery on West Broadway. Figurative work is much more acceptable now. I like the expressive power of color and non-color, what Kandinsky calls the ‘spiritual atmosphere’ color creates. My abstractions are attempts to reconcile colors without denying their essential difference – particularly red and blue, for instance. For Kandinsky, these were the most radically opposed colors and, as such, the most difficult to integrate. Could you tell us about some of your own favorite artists – the ones who stand out as having influenced or inspired you? There were so many. I grew up in a time slot when abstract art was the way to go. But I love it all. I did not use the word ARTIST – it always seemed like too big a word, too much to fulfill, but I was one of them. |
Mist
Oil on Canvas ~ 12 x 14 inches © Sonia Stark |
Blue Storm
Oil on Canvas ~ 48 x 32 inches © Sonia Stark |
As a past president of the National Association of Women Artists as well as serving on NAWA’s board of directors, what are your hopes for women artists today, those competing in that same creative ballpark as the men?
NAWA has come a long way since I became a member. It started when women were not shown in the galleries or acknowledged at all. NAWA attracted the professional woman artist who needed an outlet for her work, as well as the artist looking for a community. NAWA continues to accommodate these needs, but today the female artist has many more outlets and options and new ways to communicate.
One of our goals is to reach the young women artists who have been fed the lie that the old conditions no longer exist, that they no longer need the networking, opportunities and stimulation that an organization like NAWA can provide. The gallery situation has improved, but it is still not playing on an equal field. Just recently, I was in a show at a major gallery with eight artists. I was the only female in the group. There are many ‘women only’ exhibitions, but they do not get the coverage that they deserve. Until work is measured on quality alone, our work is not done. But since the five women who started everything in 1889, NAWA has made a difference.
NAWA has come a long way since I became a member. It started when women were not shown in the galleries or acknowledged at all. NAWA attracted the professional woman artist who needed an outlet for her work, as well as the artist looking for a community. NAWA continues to accommodate these needs, but today the female artist has many more outlets and options and new ways to communicate.
One of our goals is to reach the young women artists who have been fed the lie that the old conditions no longer exist, that they no longer need the networking, opportunities and stimulation that an organization like NAWA can provide. The gallery situation has improved, but it is still not playing on an equal field. Just recently, I was in a show at a major gallery with eight artists. I was the only female in the group. There are many ‘women only’ exhibitions, but they do not get the coverage that they deserve. Until work is measured on quality alone, our work is not done. But since the five women who started everything in 1889, NAWA has made a difference.
Unconscious Stream
Oil on Canvas ~ 5 x 7 inches
© Sonia Stark
Oil on Canvas ~ 5 x 7 inches
© Sonia Stark
Sara
Oil on Canvas ~ 30 x 20 inches © Sonia Stark |
On another note, there may be the “aging” problem, even the issue of mortality that society at large has not always faced; but there is no age limit on creativity, and you’ve proven that. The Brooklyn Rail in reviewing your oil and pastel drawing “Three Female Skulls, With Lipstick Smear” (2020) said that “it offers a clever antidote to the often-morbid eroticization of women’s bodies.” You faced the subject of death head on in this work in a very original way. The title indicates in that review that “the horrific red field that bleeds into the three stacked skulls is merely a cosmetic stain, but it also genders the remains.”
I did that piece as a joke. It was taken more seriously than it was meant. It was supposed to go into a show at the American University in Washington, then COVID hit, and the show did not go up, but the catalogue was published. Donald Kuspit, my partner who reviews for Art Forum, named the painting. What advice would you give to the aging artist who still wants to enjoy creating? Just keep on going? (Laughing) Yes. Well, I just turned ninety a couple of weeks back. Congratulations! Thank you. The difficulty is to maintain a certain level of interest. As we age, it gets harder. You want to still have the excitement when you’ve done so much and seen so much. It’s difficult. |
We can't wrap this up without asking, 'Where do you find sanctuary?'
I find sanctuary while contemplating the cloud formations as well as anywhere I can find silence.
I find sanctuary while contemplating the cloud formations as well as anywhere I can find silence.
Sonia Stark
Photo Courtesy: Sonia Stark
Photo Courtesy: Sonia Stark
