About Stephen Herrero

Stephen Herrero Born in El Paso, Texas in 1952, and having spent much of his early youth on a horse ranch in rural Nevada, Stephen has seemingly been on a singular path from childhood. An avid reader as a young child, he consumed untold volumes of literature on wildlife and nature, thus laying the foundation for his art at an early age. A self-taught artist, Stephen did not discover his sculpting ability until he was almost 30 years old. Then, while living in a small logging town in Northern California, he was first introduced to the art of chain saw carving. From those early days carving in wood, and later in stone, Stephen has been privileged to study under many of today’s accomplished sculptors. Today he works from his studio located in the foothills of the San Gorgonio wilderness area. “Whether we are viewing a beautiful pastel stroke across the evening sky or the elegant power of a wild animal one can see the inherent beauty of nature, and it speaks to me of creation and design.The greatest challenge for me in my art is to find a balance between believability and exaggeration. As an artist, I try to go beyond textbook realism to bring a heightened sense of emotion or movement to my work. I want to establish an intimacy between my artwork and the viewer, and using a looser style allows my own creativity and self-expression to distinguish between a sculpture inspired by an animal, or a sculpture representative of an animal. Emotion, mood, and interpretation, are the things which for me set an artist's work apart. Art should not just depict life, but rather be a celebration of life.”