Leslie Stefanson

A former model and actress, Leslie Stefanson recently commitment to creating visual art by devoting her time to sculpting. Although she has always had an interest in the arts, Leslie Stefanson first began to study anatomy seriously about 10 years ago at the Robert Cunningham studio.

Cunningham trained Leslie Stefanson in sculpture for about four years. During the latter part of that period, Ms. Stefanson started to cast her own bronzes. Her most recent pieces are female figures, clothed and nude, as her subjects. The pieces feature solitary women. The artist has also rendered nude female figures in terra-cotta and brass relief.

Leslie Stefanson divides her time between New York and Los Angeles, where she worked as a model and acted in films between 1994 and 2003. She most recently pursued studies in drawing and sculpting the human form at The Art Students League of New York. Founded more than 135 years ago, the League has hosted renowned artists such as Thomas Eakins, Alexander Calder, Norman Rockwell, Mark Rothko, and Jackson Pollock as students or instructors. Leslie Stefanson started taking courses in sculpture and life drawing at The Art Students League in 2009. Ms. Stefanson had her first show in summer 2011 at Rourke Art Gallery Museum in Moorhead, Minnesota, where she grew up. The Rourke exhibited her 2004 bronze, titled I Myself Alone.

Born in Fargo, North Dakota, and raised in Moorhead, Minnesota, Leslie Stefanson earned her Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Barnard College, one of the Seven Sisters institutions. She formerly worked as a model, represented by Wilhelmina Models in Manhattan, and earned roles in films such as The General’s Daughter and As Good As It Gets. To view photographs of her bronze and terra-cotta figures and brass reliefs, visit her website at www.lesliestefanson.com.