BIO

Stephanie Romano is a multidisciplinary artist and educator whose creative journey began with a love of making things by hand. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Jewelry/Metalsmithing and her Art Teacher Certification from New Jersey City University in 2006. Her work explores material, form, and the stories objects can hold. In 2023, she was honored with an Individual Artist Fellowship Grant from the Jersey City Arts Council and recently participated in the Wonder Woman 13 Residency: Walk With Me. When she is not in her studio, Stephanie teaches sculpture and ceramics in the Jersey City Public Schools, where she shares her passion for creativity with her students. She is currently pursuing her Master of Fine Arts degree and continuing to grow her practice through collaboration within the community.  

ARTIST STATEMENT

I grew up in a family that valued craftsmanship and enjoyed creating handmade objects. Our house was decorated with crocheted blankets, handcrafted curtains and embroidered pictures created by my mother's hands. The outside of our house was beautifully landscaped with greenery and an abundant vegetable garden harvested by my father who was also a mechanic. My grandmother latch hooked the pillows on our couch and the tree skirt around the Christmas tree. When I was younger I mistakenly disregarded my family as artists and felt they did not support my artistic decisions but later came to appreciate that I am an artist because of them. 

My current work explores a variety of memories and experiences encountered along the life-altering journey of motherhood. At the age of three, my non-verbal daughter was diagnosed with autism thus beginning a long and arduous journey of numerous therapies and interventions. Because of this, language plays an important role and is disassembled as well as duplicated in a variety of mediums. Sentimentality and practicality is at the core of my choice of materials while many of the techniques used relate back to my childhood.