Stephen Godlieb, born in Jakarta, Indonesia, and currently based in New Hampshire, is a distinguished painter who earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from the New Hampshire Institute of Art. His work has been extensively exhibited across the United States, including at Merge Arts in Manhattan, NY; the Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery in Portsmouth, NH; and the Spectrum Art Fair in Miami, FL. Godlieb’s art is held in numerous public and private collections worldwide and has been featured in publications like IDIR Magazine and Studio Visit Magazine.
Godlieb’s work is deeply centered on the human figure, which he uses as a foundation to explore and express abstraction. His subjects, often friends and family, are portrayed in a way that provokes thought and emotion through their gaze. “I’m not interested in presenting the viewer with an ambivalent or pleasant painting,” Godlieb says. “I prefer emotive strength.” His approach involves using the figure to scaffold abstract concepts, employing color aggressively to create a dynamic interplay between realism and abstract spaces.
In addition to his painting career, Godlieb has been recognized with the Outstanding Upcoming Painter award by Seacoast Magazine and curated the exhibition Swimming with the Lights Off at the Riversea Gallery. He remains committed to exploring the intersection of figuration and abstraction, aiming to “straddle the line between figuration and abstraction” in his artistic pursuit.
