Opening the Window - A Look Into The Creative Mind of

World-Renowned Artist William Stoehr

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By Kaylyn Aznavorian - Reality Serum Magazine 

To be blunt, William Stoehr is a creative genius, and the world appears to agree. His inspiration stems from great artists such as Picasso, Willem de Kooning, Marlene Dumas, Rembrandt, and Leonardo to name a few, and it certainly shows. We asked which of his influences he'd love to meet if it were possible, and to no surprise, it was Picasso. "I would go back a hundred years and meet Picasso. I would like to paint alongside him. I am more interested in how he thought rather than how he painted. I am especially interested in how he perceived reality and how he thought we create visual images in our brain. I think he might have thought about such things."

William Stoehr, at Bill Lowe Gallery, says he paints

“to be part of a larger conversation”

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GAIL O'NEILL   ARTS ATLANTA  SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

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A pair of obsidian eyes stare out from a series of gigantic black strokes that suggest a face against a stark, white backdrop in William Stoehr’s Emma 2. A childlike graphic scrawled on the lower right corner of the 80-inch x 60-inch canvas reads, “Emma I promise to paint your portrait if you promise to go to rehab.”

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Emma’s eyes shine, but it’s hard to tell if they’re brimming with tears or are radiant for reasons unknown. Her expression is ephemeral, and you fear that averting your gaze might cut off what little connection you have. But the temptation to look away is equally compelling — because bearing witness to what Stoehr calls “the purity of pain” is never easy.

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Who is Emma? Is she in pain, or has she found relief? Is she asking a question or trying to convey an answer? Is the abstract rendering supposed to represent Emma? Or is it a depiction of the viewer?

Efrat Cybulkiewicz - July 1, 2020

The faces he paints reflect the faces of those affected – the victims, witnesses and survivors of intolerance, addictions and violence.  William Stoehr’s paintings are beautifully disturbing. He takes our natural and predisposed attraction to faces and uses this to arouse profound and penetrating emotions within us. Emotions that at times are difficult to engage with but are incredibly important to ourselves as well as the world around us. Stoehr aims to lure far-reaching and always relevant questions and subjects to our surfaces, in order for us as a collective to face them head on and in this turmoil possibly find solutions. His art is astonishing and mesmerizing and remarkably essential. 

Kelly Stone

2021

Denver 7 abc NEWS and other Scripps outlets -feature interview

National Public Radio - Morning Edition - feature interview

BBC - World News - article

Arte Realizatta - feature interview

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2020

AR [T] MOIRE - feature interview 

2019      

NPR - City Lights WABE - interview

ARTS ATL - feature article

Westword - review

2018        

Ello – The Creators Network – featured

Artospective – feature interview

Khaleejesque Magazine Kuwait - featured

1 HD Kuwait TV - featured

2017        

Boulder Weekly – feature article

Boulder Daily Camera – feature article

Boulder Daily Camera – feature article

2016        

Westword - review

2015        

NPR Science Friday – interview

Reality Serum Magazine – feature article

Vision and Art - The Biology of Seeing

2014        

Milano Art Expo – feature article

Saatchi Art - featured

SciArt in America - review

Denver ArtScape Gallery Directory – cover

Voice of R – International Youth Magazine – feature article

 2013        

Boulder Daily Camera/Times-Call, Colorado Daily – feature article

ColectiveArtsInk – podcast -interview

Westword – review

2012       

Invisible Museum – feature article

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2011        

Westword – review 

2010        

Caribbean Art World Magazine – feature article

Boulder Daily Camera – feature article

2009        

American Contemporary Art Magazine – feature article

2008        

Destination US Virgin Islands Magazine – feature article                     

2007        

Art Fusion Magazine – feature article

St John Tradewinds – feature article

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Speaking with him from his Boulder, Colorado studio, one gets the feeling Stoehr is in his element judging from the excitement with which he speaks about his recent works. This interview finds him midway through his newest series. For many modern artists and explorers alike, this is the dreaded moment of “what do I do next?”, a critical junction between a momentous start full of ideas and fervent work and the gradual waning of drive and longing for the next frontier. Surrounded by canvases many of which are on the verge of the final brush-stroke, Stoehr finds opportunity for new discoveries in the paint already applied and inspiration for the forms not yet realized. 

Stoehr’s aptitude in rendering the human figure is astounding. The ability with which he coaxes the form from within the canvas has earned Stoehr accolades from domestic and foreign galleries.

National Public Radio - Morning Edition

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When Seeking Treatment, A Reminder Addiction Is Not A Moral Failing

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April 28, 20215:09 AM ET

Heard on  Morning Edition

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By Jon Hamilton

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An artist and a brain scientist are working together to reduce the stigma surrounding addiction. Both are determined to change society's view of addiction.

National Public Radio WABE Atlanta

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City Lights with Lois Reitzes 

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William Stoehr is an artist whose work focuses on telling the stories of those who have suffered the most.

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His exhibition at the Bill Lowe Gallery explores intolerance, discrimination, addiction and violence. The haunting portraits often span entire walls of galleries. His work usually consists of portraits with particular attention and detail paid toward the eyes of the subject.

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“I paint to make a difference – to be part of a larger conversation – to engage, motivate and heal – to be part of the solution. It’s just who I want to be,” Stoehr said.

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His exhibition runs through Oct. 18. Recently, Stoehr joined “City Lights” in-studio and talked about his path to becoming an artist.

Arte Realizzata

A Gleeming Conversation with William Stoehr

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Written by uzomah ugwu

William Stoehr is an American artist based in Boulder, Colorado. His work has been exhibited internationally at universities, art centers, museums, and galleries. I had the pleasure of asking William about his favorite moments from working with kids, what makes art important to society, exploring the connection between neuroscience and art and so much more.

UNITING ART AND SCIENCE TO FIGHT ADDICTION

Posted on May 2, 2021, updated on May 2, 2021 by John Hood

If art helps us to see things differently and science helps us to know different things, can a combination of art and science help us see there's no difference between addiction and other chronic diseases? William Stoehr thinks it can. So does Dr. Nora Volkow. And if Jon Hamilton's engaging NPR piece is any indication, the two are doing their collective best to see that it does.

and other national news outlets

Artist uses his works to end addiction stigmas

By Elizabeth Ruiz - National Corespondent - Scripps

Posted at 3:02 PM, May 11, 2021 and last updated 1:02 PM, May 11, 2021

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Beauty and the Brain: Understanding Our Responses to Art

The field of neuroaesthetics uses techniques of neurology to understand our response to art.

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by Stephanie Hughes, on March 6, 2015

And neuroaesthetic research can inspire artists, too. For instance, William Stoehr paints large-scale compositions of women’s faces and has been working on a project related to war and violence. Knowing from Connor’s research that rounded shapes seem to be more pleasing to viewers, Stoehr decided to use hard-edged lines to evoke faces that have witnessed or experienced violence. The visages that appear in paintings such as “No More Words #1” and “No More Words #2” appear starved and horrified.