Edward Armen Stasack

Printmaker, painter, professor emeritus, and author Edward Armen Stasack passed away on January 26, 2023 at the age of 93 in Prescott, AZ. Born in Chicago, Illinois in 1929 to Clifford and Bette Stasack, he graduated with an MFA in painting and printmaking from the University of Illinois at Urbana in 1956, after which he was immediately hired by the University of Hawaii (UH) to help bolster their impressive line-up of young artists.

He continued teaching at the UH until his retirement in 1988. Over those decades he not only served as Chairman of the Art Dept (1969-1973) and as the Program Chairman in Printmaking (1973-1986), he was also recognized internationally for his prints and his invention of the masonite-intaglio process for producing collographs. Stasack’s success as an artist saw his prints and paintings acquired by museums and collections around the world. A quick Google search of “Edward Stasack Collograph” brings up pages of images and articles about his work.

After a profound experience while hiking, and surviving, the King’s Highway on the Big Island of Hawaii in the late 1950s, Stasack fell in love with the Islands and began a life-long love affair for its Petroglyphs. Once retired from teaching, he dedicated his life to the preservation and recording of Hawaiian Petroglyphs. In partnership with the love of his life, Diane Stasack, they devoted their time and resources to producing many detailed archeological reports of petroglyph sites, ensuring that the enduring legacy of Hawaiian Rock Art will be preserved.

Throughout his life, he saw himself as an explorer, seeker, and above all an adventurer. Not only did his curiosity lead him to a career in the creative arts, he loved to ponder the deeper questions and mysteries of life. How could a young boy on the Cubs side of town root for the White Sox, and will the Bears ever win another Super Bowl? What is the purpose, value, and definition of good art? What drives a man with no cartilage in his knees to run 3 marathons? What is the source of truth and inspiration, and why is the muse so demanding?

We know this: he did believe there is God. And we know he is resting happy and at peace with his God. We close this tribute with the following verses from a poem by Kipling we learned from him.

When Earth’s last picture is painted.

And the tubes are twisted and dried.

When the oldest colors have faded.

And the youngest critics have died.

Then rest, thank god we will need it.

Lie down for an aeon or two.

‘Til the master of all good workmen

Shall put us to work anew….

…And no one shall work for money.

And no one shall work for fame.

But each for the joy of the working.

And each in his own separate star,

Shall paint the thing as he sees it,

For the God of Things As They Are.

~ Rudyard Kipling

He is survived by his second wife Diane Stasack, his children Caren Prentice, Jennifer Stasack, John Stasack, Michael Stasack, and David Hirsch, his eight grandchildren, and his seven great grandchildren. He will be missed.

For a more detailed professional biography, please copy and paste the url below into your browser:

https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/467321/edward-stasack-presented-with-the-albert-nelson-marquis-lifetime-achievement-award-by-marquis-whos-who#:~:text=Mr.%20Stasack%20has%20been%20endorsed%20by%20Marquis%20Who%27s,Museum%20of%20Art%2C%20and%20the%20Chicago%20Art%20Institute.https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/467321/edward-stasack-presented-with-the-albert-nelson-marquis-lifetime-achievement-award-by-marquis-whos-who#:~:text=Mr.%20Stasack%20has%20been%20endorsed%20by%20Marquis%20Who%27s,Museum%20of%20Art%2C%20and%20the%20Chicago%20Art%20Institute.