Karl Sternberg

Karl Sternberg—The Artist

The son and grandson of artists, Karl Sternberg’s passion for drawing started at an early age. He was encouraged to develop his artistic talents informally and then later through a formal education. In 1999, Sternberg graduated from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design earning a Bachelor of Fine Art degree. He then went on to earn a Master of Fine Art degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Sternberg cites Edgar Degas and Kathe Kollwitz as early influences on his artistic style. His charcoal drawings are recognized for dynamic dimensional tones of black, gray and white.

The Artist’s Process

Sternberg begins a charcoal drawing by placing everything where it needs to be on the paper. If he is doing an observational drawing he will begin the drawing process on site and then return to his Iowa City studio to finish. Sometimes he tones the paper and draws with an eraser, other times he just digs in with charcoal. In the drawings, various compressed charcoals and chalks are used to create rich dark tones. To round out the light areas, Sternberg uses white lecture chalk and white compressed charcoal.

Sternberg’s charcoal drawings are done on paper or wood panels. Treated with spar urethane, the work done on wood panels can be displayed outside.

From the artist:

“There is always a point when the drawing tells me what needs to be done to finish. It is rare that a work will turn out as initially perceived. The true excitement is in the process —there is a struggle to bring the image out, then refine the image, and then finally the decision that the work is complete.”

——Karl Sternberg

Artist Statement

Drawing has always been an outlet for me growing up, and now later in life.  I love both realism and abstract drawing.  During my undergraduate studies, I fell in love with charcoal and from there used whenever I could---quick renderings to finished works. In my graduate work, I continued to work with charcoal and often chose to draw very large pieces using charcoal and white chalk.

A lot of times I will begin by toning paper and drawing with an eraser and build up darks and lights while using charcoal and white chalk.  Other times I just dig in with vine charcoal, roughing everything in until I’m satisfied and then building the image from that. While at Minneapolis College of Art and Design, I explained to professor and artist Kinji Akagawa that I had trouble working with the full spectrum of color and that is why I chose charcoal and white chalk.  In his view, I used a variation of the full spectrum of color: black, white and everything in between. 

My ideas for abstraction come from dreams and imagination. I find the idea of alternate realities and parallel universes very interesting. I feel our dreams are a glimpse into these alternate realities and parallel universes.  My new drawing series is title Space and provides a view beyond our perceptions. I use charcoal and white chalk to create an ethereal atmospheric environment.

 —Karl Sternberg