Stephanie Firestone’s use of color and form, along with an accomplished skill in drawing, enable her to search the human form for truth and essence. Her ceramic forms and terra cotta sculptures capture and suggest more than just a physical form. It is as though she is embodying each of her pieces with an essence of the earth that speaks through the tones she chooses – muted greens, blues and pinks, with a splash of aqua or white – and the spirit of the sculptors who have gone before her. She cites Henry Moore, Charles Johnson of the Art League School in Va., and, most notably, her father Peter Haikalis – an accomplished painter who concentrates primarily on the figure – as her primary influences.

Ms. Firestone grew up in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and art was clearly her destiny. Her father’s paintings and her numerous hours spent sketching and studying the figure led to a natural affinity for sculpting it. After graduating from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a BFA, Firestone returned to the Washington, D.C. area to work as a graphic designer and run her own graphic design business. Clients include national associations and foundations. She is a current member and past board member of The Clay Connection, and is an active member of the Washington Sculptors Group (WSG). She has shown her work in many juried shows, including Sculpture Now 2006, the annual show of the WSG. Her awards include second place for sculpture at the Mid-Atlantic Clay Conference and honorable mention for sculpture at the Fincastle Fine Art Festival, among others. She also exhibits in galleries in North Carolina and southwest Virginia. Many of her works are in the collections of businesses and individuals.