Steffi Friedman
1925 – 2019
Steffi Friedman was born on March 10, 1925 in Berlin, Prussia, Germany to Karl and Elise (Nachmann) David. Friedman came to the United States in 1940 and has been a Westport resident since 1952.
Steffi's love for art was established very early in her life by the many visits to museums with her father in the city of Berlin. Steffi was encouraged by her high school art teacher, and with a scholarship on Saturday mornings to the Art Students' League in NYC, Steffi had her first exposure to modeling in terra cotta. She liked the movement, sensitivity and emotion that she could produce in a three-dimensional object. Steffi felt the freedom of viewing a sculpture from all angles. She could patina the finished sculpture and use color the same way that would be possible in a painting. Steffi graduated from the Pratt Institute and studied at Columbia University. She credits her training in sculpture to the past President of the National Sculpture Society, Stanley Bleifeld. After studying with him for 7 years, Steffi established her own career. She taught sculpture at Fairfield University and in an adult education program. Steffi opened her own instructional studio where she was better equipped to teach. She has been teaching in her own studio for 25 years, and her students now include professional sculptors and children. "They give me the future," she says. Her commissioned works are represented in more than 150 collections throughout the country, including Temple Israel in Westport. She has served as a board member of the Society of Connecticut Sculptors, the National Sculpture Society, the International Sculpture Society, and the Westport Arts Center.
Steffi's love for art was established very early in her life by the many visits to museums with her father in the city of Berlin. Steffi was encouraged by her high school art teacher, and with a scholarship on Saturday mornings to the Art Students' League in NYC, Steffi had her first exposure to modeling in terra cotta. She liked the movement, sensitivity and emotion that she could produce in a three-dimensional object. Steffi felt the freedom of viewing a sculpture from all angles. She could patina the finished sculpture and use color the same way that would be possible in a painting. Steffi graduated from the Pratt Institute and studied at Columbia University. She credits her training in sculpture to the past President of the National Sculpture Society, Stanley Bleifeld. After studying with him for 7 years, Steffi established her own career. She taught sculpture at Fairfield University and in an adult education program. Steffi opened her own instructional studio where she was better equipped to teach. She has been teaching in her own studio for 25 years, and her students now include professional sculptors and children. "They give me the future," she says. Her commissioned works are represented in more than 150 collections throughout the country, including Temple Israel in Westport. She has served as a board member of the Society of Connecticut Sculptors, the National Sculpture Society, the International Sculpture Society, and the Westport Arts Center.
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