STEPHEN COBURN

Well known for his contemporary sculpture, Stephen has exhibited in many group exhibitions & four solo exhibitions to date. He is a prize winning sculptor who describes his style as ‘a balance between human endeavor and nature, a distilling of organic shapes to produce an almost rune-like vocabulary of form and meaning’.

His work is inspired by his environment, the great southern island continent, Australia, & its history. The present & future of his home intrigue him and his subjects are derived from nature, going from realism to complete abstract form or symbolism. There is an environmental theme that connects all his sculptures. 

Coburn was born in Sydney, 1955 and grew up on the Northern Beaches. He began building models as a child. At the age of 10, he won first prize at the 1966 Brookvale Easter Show for a wooden model of the ship ‘HMAS Napal’, upon which his father John served during WWII. 

He went on to study sculpture & painting at the National Art School, Sydney. As a teenager, Stephen developed a keen interest in music. While at art school, he became the original bass player for the renowned band ‘Mental As Anything’.

Stephen continued his studies in Canberra in the Conservation of Cultural Materials, and has been working as a fine art conservator since 1980.

During that time he continued his art practice, exhibiting in many solo & group exhibitions of painting & sculpture in Australia, America and Hong Kong. In the year 2000, he began to concentrate on sculpture, and has been selected to exhibit in ‘Sculpture by the Sea’ Bondi and ‘Sculpture in the Vineyards’ Wollombi Valley numerous times since.

www.stephencoburn.com.au