BIOGRAPHY - Stephen Sebald (Born 1979)

Stephen was born and raised in Bay City, Michigan.  Some of his earliest memories include drawing with crayons, and wanting to become a cartoonist because of various cartoons and Sunday comics.  Once this initial interest in art lead him to dig deeper, he became more interested in Old Master paintings.  Art continued to play a role in his life to various degrees and when high school graduation approached and he needed to focus on a career, he chose to enroll in the art program at the local community college.  At first he was excited by the new information he learned, however once he later enrolled in the art program at the university level, he was told repeatedly that realistic and representational art had run its course, and there was little to no future in art regardless the style or medium.  After earning his BFA, Stephen turned to “normal” careers in construction and as an auto mechanic, though his interest in art was later rekindled.  He began researching and found there was still an audience for the artwork he loved as well as artists supporting themselves making it.  This ultimately led him to Ani Art Academy Waichulis in Pennsylvania, where he now studies to develop his skills and hone his technique to enable him to communicate with an audience which shares his love.