Biography

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  Robert Sticker is considered one of America’s most outstanding marine painters… a legend in the field of marine art. Born in Jersey City, NJ in 1922, he began painting and drawing at the age of three and his interest remained lifelong. Later, living in Staten Island, N.Y., and watching the incredible activity in New York Harbor, an interest in the sea was sparked that intensified over the years. 

  Painting began as a hobby for Bob, who studied accounting and economics at Brooklyn College. He soon left school and took a job in accounting in the oil industry. When World War II was declared, Bob enlisted to serve his country and chose the Navy for his love of the sea. He was assigned to officer’s candidate training and appointed captain of the crew of a PBY. 

  After serving in WWII, he returned to his job in the oil industry, this time in the art department. It was then that he began his part time studies at the Art Students League in New York under the tutelage of Frank Reilly. Any artist who could survive Art Students League instructor Frank Reilly's "24-head" problem, which demanded painting the same head over and over in 24 different kinds of light and shadow, and still come out enthusiastic is someone special. He began painting full time in 1963. 

  Equally adept in watercolor and oil, over the years, he created a body of work that is singularly compelling and dramatic. He is widely recognized throughout the artistic community for the accuracy of his research and his ability to depict the drama of the human aspect of life at sea with great compassion and poignancy. He is an artist whose attention to detail springs from a close involvement with and knowledge of his work. Recognizing each ship as unique, Bob devoted hours to research and on-the spot studies of the particular vessel he painted. He executed many impressive pieces of historical maritime scenes that attracted commissions from private and corporate collectors. From creating many distinguished paintings portraying the whaling and fishing industries of America, recreating historical scenes of the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, to scenes in the Homblower novels to depicting the great days of steamboating along the Mississippi, Bob quietly amassed a national following for his unique and beautiful paintings.

  Bob was a founding member of the American Society of Marine Artists and was also the recipient of awards from the Franklin Mint and Mystic Seaport. His paintings are included in Bound for Blue Waters, a book that is a definitive collection of the best American marine art of the 20th and early 21st century. His work has also been included in the corporate collections of IBM, Union Carbide and AT&T and in numerous private collections.