Featured Artist: Alexander Rokoff
The paintings featured on this issue’s cover and table of contents were both created by the same artist, Alexander Rokoff. The cover’s Blind Shepherd is about ‘aumakua (personal gods). Alexander explains, “To me, it feels similar to the Native American concept of a totem animal. The main subject is blissfully trusting in the goats to guide him as he herds them. The stubborn, playful nature of the goats coupled with the carefree stroll of the shepherd represents the power in joyfully trusting your path in life through all the ups and downs.”
He goes on to say, “The table of contents’ Songbird represents the dramatic duality, both thematically and pictorially, between dark and light, hard and soft, scarcity and abundance, sustenance and play. The saffron finch brings light and song to the harsh existence of the island goats.”
On this page, Alexander says, “The Feast of the Pheasants is a love story. The chivalrous male Kalij pheasant patiently stands guard while his mate enjoys the abundant fruits of the island.”
Alexander Rokoff was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, into a creative family. He always made art as a child. His father was a cartoonist and he wanted to follow in his dadʻs footsteps, until he discovered the old masters.
As a young teen, Alexander’s path to pursue old world figurative oil painting became clear, although he took a rather circuitous route to where he is today. With the help of a devoted high school teacher, Alexander landed a full art scholarship at a university, however, after three semesters he became disillusioned, and dropped out.
After leaving art school, he embarked on a 10-year apprenticeship in a variety of disciplines under several different artists. He shares, “I created a plan: I would work for an artist, save as much money as I could, and between apprenticeships, travel to Europe, Mexico, Central and South America, where I would immerse myself in the culture and paint full time. I would often trade mural paintings with hotels and restaurants for room and board. My apprenticeships consisted of working in a high-end custom furniture studio, two different steel sculpture studios, an etching and monotype printmaking studio and a three-year apprenticeship sculpting life sized figures in clay to be cast in bronze. Finally, in Norway and France, I had the golden opportunity to work with the world-renowned figurative painter Odd Nerdrum. All the while I was attending life drawing groups wherever I could and endlessly drawing people in cafes, parks, everywhere. In 2003, I launched Rokoff Studio in Portland, Oregon, where I taught people everything I had learned along the way about old world oil painting. I ran the school until I relocated to the Big Island in 2018.”
“The Big Island feels to me to be the closest place to the garden of Eden from a painter’s perspective. I feel that all of my varied travels and experiences have led me here to do my best work. I find inspiration everywhere I look on the island. I’m as captivated with the landscape as I am with the flora and fauna. But for me, it’s really about the aloha spirit which emanates from the people here that really inspires me. I feel like I am just scraping the surface of what kind of paintings I will create here as I listen, see, and experience Hawai‘i. For my magnum opus, I have designed a massive multi-panel oil painting devoid of temporal trends and politics. A painting for ‘eyes yet unborn’ as my dead painter friend Abu used to say.”
Alexander and his wife, Camille, relaunched Rokoff Studio at the Kona Inn Shopping Village as a gallery. Camille wears many creative hats and their skills dovetail together well. Alexander says, “Camille’s ideas and vision for our business have given me more momentum and creative strength to push further into my work. Together, I feel we have only just begun the next chapter of Rokoff Studio on the Big Island. We sell original oil paintings, a wide variety of unique gifts, and do commission work of all kinds.”
For more information: rokoffstudio.com
