Scott Stoll spent his childhood in the Mid-west heartland with Amish and Mennonite roots. His practical upbringing on agricultural farms was the perfect training for “making things”, for learning carpentry, welding and stone work. Tools are a natural and comfortable fit in his rough, strong hands and are implicit in the execution of his work that requires cutting and shaping hard materials. Over the years, he has had a few formal instructions in drawing, bronze casting, mold making, and stone carving to round out this experience.

Stoll’s journey to the east coast was propelled by a short stint at West Point, a rebellious backlash under sail and sun in the Caribbean, and a wide-eyed awakening and soft landing in Manhattan and the NYC art scene. Frequent visits to museums and galleries became the alternative to formal art education. Hours were spent drawing while sitting before both classic and cutting edge works of art.

Throughout a lifetime of human service work (VISTA, Peace Corps, Public Health nursing and Homeless Services), sculpting persistently shadowed life and eventually became a constant companion. The female form has always been his most familiar subject evolving through youthful love and romance to the power and miracle of Madonna forms first explored during the births of his two children. Today, the sensual sculptural forms of this mature artist are created by master hands that confidently find clear edges and harmonious balance in the selected mass of wood, stone, or bronze. Occasionally his subject is strictly organic and abstract but most pieces interpret the human form.

Scott Stoll shares a blended family life with Susanna Place, his activist, NGO consultant, and author wife, and their four dynamic adult children. Sculpting at three venues: an island in Maine, a garden studio in the tropics, and above the Neponsett river near Boston, Stoll works in rich grained woods, in a variety of stone, and occasionally in bronze. His work has been shown and collected both in the US and internationally. He organizes and hosts artist retreats for painters, photographers, video makers, and most recently songwriters. Exploring other aspects of his own creativity he has taken up the keyboard and has written several songs. “Life for me”, he reflects, “has resembled the reductive process of sculpting; early on it was easy to take off large debris, declaring that I didn’t want to do this or be that. Now as I’ve worked my way into the sixth decade of life, I’m more discerning, the chips fall slowly, I make decisions and choices about which small particles of wood, stone, or Life remain with me (or the sculpture) and which are simply discarded”.

Scott Stoll is a member of the NESA (New England Sculpture Association) and a trustee with the Carving Studio and Sculpture Center in West Rutland, Vermont. His work is currently represented by June LaCombe Sculpture in Maine, L’Attitude Gallery in Boston, and LaAntigua Galleria in Guatemala.

For more information about Scott’s involvement with songwriter’s retreats and oyster farming visit:

Songwriter’s Retreats: Catie at the Cove
GeorgetownIslandOysters.com