Stephen Lockert

Although trying to flush his mother's jewelry box down the toilet, when first learning to walk, might not strike you as the marker of a curious mind, the fact that Stephen did it several times may tell a different story! This learning adventure was a preamble to many more focused attempts at wrangling understanding from a world of constraints, but it was certainly NOT the messiest.

Stephen Lockert loved taking things apart at a young age, and by seventh grade he and his brother were bringing tools (covertly, in their backpacks) to their small Southern California school...just in case they stumbled upon something good to dismantle. Nothing was safe.

By the time he was 15 in 1980, he had begun to actually put things back together. By this time he had classroom experience with glass blowing, ceramics, copper enameling, auto mechanics and the newly arrived personal computer. This was followed by deep dives into jewelry fabrication, casting, silversmithing, carving and later, large scale sculpture. Much of this activity unfolded over many years while working to co-raise four sons, but it was never far beneath the cloud of love & commotion.

As an artist today, Stephen sees it as his job to reveal something previously unknown to the participant (viewer doesn't adequately describe it). About his process, Stephen remarked, "I never want my art to sit idly by. It must engage, incite, entreat, captivate, solicit or encourage. My largest works are created to literally GET IN or GET ON (see-saw video), and at their best, transport you to a new perspective. My smallest works are centered around identity or specific meanings for the customer. In short, I want to instill the same curiosity about the world for others, as I have when creating the pieces themselves."

Stephen lives on a working ranch near Petaluma,CA, a town of 59k in Sonoma County, 50 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge. The ocean breeze occasionally makes its way past the cattle smells that often stand sentinel throughout this valley, but there are no guarantees.

The only guarantee is that most days you'll find him in his studio creating something new, while intermittently taking in the long view of Two Rock Valley, where his home sits. This is rarely accompanied by anyone trying to flush his precious belongings down the toilet, but it does occasionally cross his mind.