{{Short description|American sculptor (1923–2016)}} {{for|the German painter|Karl Stirner (painter)}} {{Use American English|date=April 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2026}} {{Infobox artist | image = | birth_date = November 14, 1923 | birth_place = Bad Wildbad, Weimar Germany | death_date = February 18, 2016 | death_place = Easton, Pennsylvania, US | field = {{hlist|Sculpture|Metalwork}} | training = | movement = | works = ''Red Arch'' (2011) | spouse = {{Plainlist| * {{marriage|Barbara Lund|1955|1957|end=died}} * {{marriage|Heather Harland}} * {{marriage|Gay Elwell|2010|2012|end=died}} }} | children = 3 | patrons = | awards = }} '''Karl Stirner''' (November 14, 1923 – February 18, 2016) was a German-born American sculptor known internationally for his metalwork.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner>{{cite web|title=About Karl Stirner|url=http://karlstirner.com/Karl_Stirner_About/|website=Karl Stirner|accessdate=October 23, 2017|archive-date=July 24, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160724163005/http://karlstirner.com/Karl_Stirner_About/|url-status=dead}}</ref> His work has been shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art, the James A. Michener Art Museum, the Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, New Jersey, the Delaware Art Museum, and other locations.<ref name="mcall">{{cite web|url=https://www.mcall.com/2013/03/16/easton-sculptor-karl-stirner-is-a-quiet-superhero-in-a-city-of-artists/|title=Easton sculptor Karl Stirner is a quiet superhero in a city of artists - tribunedigital-mcall|publisher=The Morning Call|access-date=20 September 2015}}</ref> Stirner also participated in exhibitions in Taiwan, Hungary, and Italy.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner /> Stirner was born in Bad Wildbad, Weimar Germany, and his family immigrated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He started his career in Philadelphia, opening several shops and working as an art professor at the Moore College of Art, Swarthmore College, Temple University, and the Tyler School of Art.
In 1983, Stirner moved to Easton, Pennsylvania. Stirner spent most of his later life revitalizing the arts scene in Easton and the city of Easton honored him by creating the "Karl Stirner Arts Trail."<ref name="Ground Broken for Karl Stirner Arts Trail">{{cite web|url=http://easton.patch.com/articles/ground-broken-for-karl-stirner-arts-trail|title=Ground Broken for Karl Stirner Arts Trail | Easton, PA Patch|publisher=easton.patch.com|accessdate=20 September 2015}}</ref>
==Early life and education== Stirner was born in Bad Wildbad, Germany in 1923 during the Weimar Republic to Pauline (née Gunn) and Karl Stirner. He was the youngest of five children. His family immigrated to the United States in 1927, where they settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
As a child, Stirner considered himself an enthusiastic naturalist:
<blockquote>As a child I had—and still have—a great love of nature. Every frog, bird, insect—any living creature—was of extraordinary interest. Minerals, crystals of quartz and garnet, shells called me. I loved it all, and engaged in a constant quest for every facet of the natural world.<ref name="Karl Stirner">{{cite book|last1=Ek|first1=Ken|last2=Hanover|first2=Lisa|last3=Leich|first3=Dave|last4=Kuspit|first4=Donald|title=Karl Stirner|year=2013|isbn=978-0-9621345-2-4}}</ref></blockquote>
From sixth to eighth grades, between 1934 and 1936, Stirner attended Dobbins Vocational School. In 1941, Stirner enrolled in the Drexel Institute of Art in Philadelphia to study mechanical engineering. However, Stirner dropped out after only six months, not lasting a full year at this school. Stirner then worked as an industrial designer before entering the military. Stirner served in the Army, where he was deployed to the Philippines and New Guinea from 1943 to 1946 during World War II.
==Career== Stirner's interest in metalworking stemmed from his father, who was a fine jeweler. After returning from the military, Stirner opened an experimental machine shop in the present-day Germantown section of Philadelphia in 1946, where he designed precision mechanical devices. Some of his prototypes included a capsule loading machine for pharmacists and a fishing reel.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner /> In 1948, Stirner opened a metal arts studio that he ran until 1957. Stirner created metal furniture and ecclesiastical items in this studio. In 1956, Stirner opened his own metal-working shop, Karl Stirner Ornamental Ironworks, in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. He sold iron furniture and sculptures at this shop, as well as led lessons on welding and other sculptural processes. Students from the Tyler School of Art visited the shop to learn welding and other skills.
Stirner continued teaching at the Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia, where he taught classes in 1955, despite having little formal education and no real artistic background. He then became the director of the Metal Sculpture Department at the Tyler School of Art in 1957 and later taught courses there, including basic design and art history at Temple University, Moore College of Art and Design, and Swarthmore College.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner />
Between 1957 and 1975, Stirner's work was shown at the Delaware Museum of Art (1959), the Philadelphia Museum of Art (1960 and 1963), the Philadelphia Print Club (1963), the Museum of Modern Art (1963), the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1963 and 1975), the Corcoran Gallery of Art (1975), the Fort Worth Museum of Art (1975), the La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art (1975), and the Pratt Graphic Art Center (1975).<ref name=AboutKarlStirner /> Stirner was also involved in architectural design and construction. Between 1969 and 1971, Stirner built houses in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He also designed and built Hartford Square, a residential zone in West Chester, Pennsylvania that was a former industrial zone.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner />
In 1982, Stirner moved to Brooklyn, New York City, where he opened the Stirner-Unangst Gallery. In 1983, Stirner relocated to Easton, Pennsylvania in 1983, where he spent the rest of his life. Stirner moved into a former warehouse and sewing factory at 230 Ferry Street in Easton, and went on to open the Karl Stirner Gallery, art and dance studios, and commercial spaces. His purchase of an old industrial building on Ferry Street marked the beginning of the "Easton Experiment" in 1982, which then turned into The Easton Arts Building. Over the next 17 years, Stirner dedicated his time to revitalizing the arts scene in Easton.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner />
Between 1985 and 2013, Stirner's work was shown in Cedar Crest College (1985), the University of Connecticut Health Center (1987), Fairleigh Dickinson University (1900), The Gallery at the State Theater Center for the Arts in Easton, Pennsylvania (1993), the Grounds for Sculpture show in Hamilton Township, New Jersey (1995), Everhart Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania (1999), the Allentown Art Museum (2000 and 2006), James A. Michener Art Museum (2001 and 2013), First International Steel and Iron Sculpture Festival in Kaohsiung (2002), the Janos Pannonius Museum in Pécs, Hungary (2002), the Pratt Institute Sculpture Park (2004), Tufts University Art Gallery (2005), the American Art Festival in Genoa, Italy (2008), and the Payne Gallery at Moravian College (2013).<ref name=AboutKarlStirner />
===Personal life=== Stirner had three marriages throughout his lifetime. He married his first wife, Barbara Lund (1936-1957), in 1955 and they were together until she took her own life at 21 years old. Stirner was deeply affected by her death and created "Barbara in a Box," a steel-framed black-and-white portrait from their wedding, as a way to honor her memory.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Dube|first1=Ilene|title=Stirner and Son, Forged with Steel|url=http://princetoninfo.com/index.php/component/us1more/?key=5-27-15-stirner|website=Princeton Info|accessdate=October 15, 2017|archive-date=October 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016070334/http://princetoninfo.com/index.php/component/us1more/?key=5-27-15-stirner|url-status=dead}}</ref>
He then married Heather Harland and had three children: Heather (born 1962), Noelle (born 1967), and Jonas (born 1970). His son, Jonas Stirner, became a sculptor. In 2010, Karl Stirner married Gay Elwell (1958-2012). She died only two years later at the age of 54.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner />
Karl Stirner also enjoyed traveling to various places around the world to study and display his art. He traveled to Mexico between 1969 and 1971 to study pre-Columbian art. He also spent time from 1971 until his death traveling to Guatemala, Mexico, Italy, France, England, and Turkey.<ref name=AboutKarlStirner />
==Death== On February 18, 2016, Stirner died at his home in Easton, Pennsylvania, at age 92.<ref name= "Karl Stirner, Easton arts pioneer, died at 92">{{cite web|url=http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2016/02/karl_stirner_easton_arts_pione.html|title=Karl Stirner, Easton arts pioneer, died at 92|publisher=lehighvalleylive.com|accessdate=19 February 2016}}</ref>
==Art== ===Metalwork=== Stirner was a self-taught artist whose main focus was metalwork. He produced metal sculptures and engravings with metal, typically iron and steel, from Bethlehem Steel, shipwrecks, and junkyards.<ref>{{cite web|title=Karl Stirner|url=http://www.artartworks.com/exhibitions/karl-stirner-12424/|website=Art & Artworks|accessdate=October 26, 2017}}</ref> In his work, Stirner would bend, shape, and weld the metal into various forms in order to test the various ways he could manipulate it for his art.<ref name="Karl Stirner" /> Stirner was praised for his ability to transform metal and give it new life.<ref name="Karl Stirner" />
<blockquote>Karl Stirner, when sculpting, fuses natural materials with man-made ones. He contracts smooth surfaces with rough and pitted ones to form organic shapes.<ref name="Lafayette Awards Three Honorary Degrees at 180th Commencement">{{cite web|url=https://news.lafayette.edu/2015/05/23/lafayette-awards-three-honorary-degrees-at-180th-commencement/|title=Lafayette Awards Three Honorary Degrees at 180th Commencement|publisher=news.lafayette.edu|accessdate=23 May 2015}}</ref> Karl Stirner's career with steel sculpture began in 1928, after Catalan sculptor and painter, Julio González taught him welding.<ref name="Karl Stirner"/> </blockquote>
Stirner's artistic focus was exploring how to put his knowledge, experience, and dreams into a sculpture.<ref name="Karl Stirner" /> While the piece of metal may vaguely resemble a bucket, step ladder, or stick figure, the piece typically represents one of Stirner's dreams. Most of the pieces of Stirner's metalwork were untitled.
===Style=== Much of Karl Stirner's work is considered to embody an abstract style. Stirner used his metalwork and steel sculptures to translate and express many of his inner feelings and thoughts. Stirner's sculptures typically fall into two subcategories of the abstract: expressionism and constructivist. His expressionist sculptures have been described as "anxiety-ridden" while his constructivist sculptures have been described as "depressive". This is because they appear to elicit depressive emotions and feelings of internal conflict. The "dream-like" aspect of his work is supposedly inspired by Stirner's unconscious state. A work of his that is most notable for being dream-like is ''Head of a Woman and Woman in the Garden.''<ref name="Karl Stirner"/>
{{blockquote|Stirner's work is intentionally abstract (refined and gritty; thick and thin; smooth and rough). It is variously humorous, while tragic as well as simple, yet complex. Stirner's work is loyal to the medium itself, to the steel of which it is composed; it exhibits a familiarity and a knowledge of that medium. It is almost an identity, a kinship, with the metal.
Stirner is subjective and expressionist, but he is not mannered. His work is the work of the spirit finding itself—not in clay—but in steel.<ref name="Karl Stirner"/> }}
===Exhibitions and awards=== *1859: Solo show at the Delaware Museum of Art.<ref name="AboutKarlStirner" /> *1956: Group show held in The Print Club, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Stirner was awarded the ''Lessing J. Resenwald Prize'' for his woodcut, ''The Forces of Time''.<ref name="AboutKarlStirner" /> *1959: Solo show in the Delaware Museum of Art in Wilmington, Delaware.<ref name="AboutKarlStirner" /> *1963: **Solo show of 52 engravings at the Philadelphia Print Club.<ref name="Karl Stirner" /> **Group show held at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. *2015: Stirner received an Honorary Degree from Lafayette College.
Stirner and his work greatly influenced Steve Tobin, causing Tobin to organize exhibitions at the Payne Gallery of Moravian College and the James A. Michener Art Museum to present Stirner's life work. Stirner and Tobin met each other in 1990 after Tobin heard Stirner on National Public Radio (NPR) promoting Easton, Pennsylvania's up-and-coming art scene.<ref name="Karl Stirner" />
==Karl Stirner Arts Trail== Stirner is memorialized in Easton, Pennsylvania by the Karl Stirner Arts Trail (formerly the Bushkill Trail) that opened along the Bushkill Creek in 2011. The trail extends from the Delaware River, through historic downtown Easton, and along the banks of the Bushkill Creek. The 2.5-mile-long trail connects Third Street with the Lehigh Valley Silk Mills redevelopment project along 13th Street.<ref name="Karl Stirner, Easton arts pioneer, dies at 92">{{cite web|url=http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2016/02/karl_stirner_easton_arts_pione.html|title=Karl Stirner, Easton arts pioneer, dies at 92|publisher=lehighvalleylive.com|accessdate=19 February 2016}}</ref> The arts trail contains works by Karl Stirner and other local and international artists, including Willie Cole, David Kimball Anderson, and Patricia Meyerowitz.<ref name="Karl's Stirner Arts Trail Auction">{{cite web|url=http://sites.lafayette.edu/ksat-auction/the-trail/|title=Karl's Stirner Arts Trail Auction|publisher=easton-pa.com}}</ref><ref name="Karl Stirner Arts Trial Easton PA">{{cite web|url=http://karlstirner.com/Karl_Stirner_Arts_Trail/|title=Karl Stirner|publisher=karlstirner.com|access-date=2016-02-22|archive-date=2016-02-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160223201522/http://karlstirner.com/Karl_Stirner_Arts_Trail/|url-status=dead}}</ref> It has been stated that the philosophy of the Arts Trail includes environmental sustainability as well as public stewardship of an urban "green infrastructure."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://karlstirnerartstrail.org/about-us/|title=About Us|access-date=2017-10-25|archive-date=2017-10-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026072356/http://karlstirnerartstrail.org/about-us/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Currently, Jim Toia, an artist and Lafayette College professor, is lead administrator of the trail.<ref name="Jim Toia statement">{{cite web|url=http://sites.lafayette.edu/ksat-auction/jim-toia/|title=Jim Toia|publisher=sites.lafayette.edu|accessdate=12 July 2015}}</ref>
The ribbon cutting ceremony was held on November 3, 2011.<ref name="Easton set to officially open Karl Stirner Arts Trail">{{cite web|url=http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2011/11/easton_set_to_officially_open.html|title=Easton set to officially open Karl Stirner Arts Trail|publisher=lehighvalleylive.com|accessdate=3 November 2011}}</ref>
The trail now includes the "Young Masters Wall" which exhibits the paintings of area youth on a rotating basis.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://karlstirnerartstrail.org/art/the-young-masters-wall/|title=Young Masters Wall}}</ref>
===Artwork=== The trail has fifteen sculptures that were chosen by the Board of Governance of the Karl Stirner Arts Trail, a nonprofit organization that includes members of Lafayette College, art experts, and city officials. The first sculpture on the trail is Stirner's red steel arch. The arch represents not only Stirner's style, but also his contribution to the art scene of Easton.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Higgins|first1=Tim|title=Discover art in Easton at galleries, Karl Stirner Arts Trail|url=http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/arts/mc-insiders-easton-art-karl-stirner-galleries-20151024-story.html|website=The Morning Call|accessdate=October 30, 2017|archive-date=October 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016070846/http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/arts/mc-insiders-easton-art-karl-stirner-galleries-20151024-story.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
The other seven sculptures include three pieces of Willie Cole's ''Grace Gate'', ''Jack & Jill'' and ''The Jungle''; Loren Madsen's ''Nobori''; David Kimball Andersen's ''Nitrogen & Hydrogen''; Patricia Weyerowiz's ''Easton Ellipse''; Paul Deery's ''Water Way.''<ref name="Discover Art in Easton at Galleries, Karl Stirner Arts Trail">{{cite web|url=http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/arts/mc-insiders-easton-art-karl-stirner-galleries-20151024-story.html|title=Discover Art in Easton at Galleries, Karl Stirner Arts Trail|publisher=mcall.com|accessdate=24 October 2015|archive-date=25 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151025131344/http://www.mcall.com/entertainment/arts/mc-insiders-easton-art-karl-stirner-galleries-20151024-story.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Also, at the end of the trail there is an ongoing community project between the youth of Easton schools and organizations called "The Young Master's Wall". This wall features paintings directly on a rock wall.
In 2017, the city added sculptures by Steve Tobin.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Tatu|first1=Christina|title=Sculptures by famed artist Steve Tobin installed in Easton this week|url=http://www.mcall.com/news/local/easton/mc-nws-easton-steve-tobin-20171025-story.html|accessdate=28 October 2017|work=themorningcall.com|publisher=The Morning Call|date=October 25, 2017}}</ref>
====Possible Realities Two==== ''Possible Realities Two'' is the result of a call for environmentally-focused entries in 2015. Each year over twenty-five local artists and public vote for the ideas that they consider the best. The artwork that receives the most votes will become a "reality". The winning artist will receive a stipend of 4,000 dollars to produce and install their work.<ref name="Possible Realities Two Opens for Easton's Karl Stirner Arts Trail">{{cite web|url=https://communications.lafayette.edu/2015/07/07/possible-realities-two-opens-for-eastons-karl-stirner-arts-trail/|title=Possible Realities Two Opens for Easton's Karl Stirner Arts Trail|publisher=communications.lafayette.edu|accessdate=7 July 2015}}</ref>
''Water Way'' by Paul Deery was chosen in 2015 as the first piece of ''Possible Realities Two'' artwork. It is a stone-line trail that follows the Bushkill Creek. The artist intended for people to feel the flow of water while they walk along the path.<ref name="Possible Realities Two: Proposals for the Karl Stirner Arts Trail">{{cite web|url=https://galleries.lafayette.edu/2015/07/12/possible-realities-two/|title=Possible Realities Two: Proposals for the Karl Stirner Arts Trail|publisher=galleries.lafayette.edu}}</ref> The installation of ''Water Way'' was executed from July 11 to August 15, 2015.<ref name="Possible Realities Two: Proposals for the Karl Stirner Arts Trail"/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [http://karlstirner.com/Karl_Stirner_Works/ Stirner's metalwork] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624091346/http://karlstirner.com/Karl_Stirner_Works/ |date=2016-06-24 }} * [http://karlstirner.com/ Karl Stirner Life, Art, and Arts Trail] * [https://obits.lehighvalleylive.com/us/obituaries/etpa/name/karl-stirner-obituary?id=17108663 "Obituary"] at Lehigh Valley Live {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stirner, Karl}} Category:1923 births Category:2016 deaths Category:20th-century American sculptors Category:21st-century American sculptors Category:German emigrants to the United States Category:American modern artists Category:People from Easton, Pennsylvania Category:People from Calw (district) Category:Swarthmore College faculty Category:Temple University faculty