Life and Art

B.J. Stepan was born in Youngstown and lived there a short while before moving about the country in gypsy-like fashion. It was at the age of 3 that he began to explore art-making by both doodling epic fight scenes in the blank corners of encyclopedias and covering his sister in chocolate syrup. He filled his first sketchbook by the age of five after being introduced to a local artist named Bob Palmer whose surrealist fantasy paintings influenced him early on. He was notorious for staging neighborhood theatrical productions, in love with telling stories. It was quickly realized an artistic talent existed when he entered work into school art contests, winning both awards and praise from students.

Artistic Roots

B.J. was influenced more than anything by comic books. To tell a story was most important, explaining his natural ability to render detailed narrative scenes. In sixth grade B.J. created a series of comic books titled The Alley Gang, which went on to become a weekly comic strip in the local newspaper. Another component of B.J.’s work is the energy in both detail and movement, a reflection of his love of punk rock music. By his senior year in high school, B.J. had won an award at a regional art contest and had formed a punk rock band called The Ignorantz.

Work

An appreciation for painting was slowly realized over the years following graduation. After three years of working, B.J. put together a portfolio of paintings and won an art scholarship to YSU. He also won three awards within a span of two months for his work at local galleries. He is currently putting together a series of paintings for solo and group shows in 2012.