Raymond Rocklin: A Visionary Voice in Sculpture and Studio Jewelry Returns to Auction

Raymond Rocklin: A Visionary Voice in Sculpture and Studio Jewelry Returns to Auction

Edited by Christian Answini | Senior Fine Art Specialist

On July 24th, 2025, Alderfer Auction presents a significant opportunity for collectors, institutions, and enthusiasts of modern American art to acquire the work of Raymond Rocklin—an artist whose legacy bridges fine art, wearable design, and philosophical exploration. This curated offering includes both sculpture and studio jewelry and reflects the renewed attention to Rocklin’s contributions as a seminal, though often underrecognized, figure in American Abstract Expressionism and artist-made jewelry.

A Life Rooted in Adversity, Art, and Resilience

Raymond Rocklin was born on August 18, 1922, in Moodus, Connecticut. His mother died when he was just two years old, and his early childhood was marked by profound upheaval. After the family relocated to New York City, Rocklin was placed in the Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York in Hell’s Kitchen. He was later sent to work on a farm in Glen Spey, NY. Despite childhood illness—he suffered from rheumatic fever and missed years of school—Rocklin earned a scholarship to the prestigious Stuyvesant High School. Living in the Bronx with his siblings, he often roller-skated across the city to attend classes. His unconventional journey continued when, at age 18, he hitchhiked across the country to California—walking the width of Oklahoma when no one would pick him up. He briefly worked at a Max Factor plant and lived in a garden shed, sharing it in shifts with a friend who nearly succumbed to heatstroke while locked inside. These stories, relayed by family, reveal both the severity of his early life and the dark humor that would later characterize his personality.

A Sculptor of Spirit and Substance

In 1942, during World War II, Rocklin was selected by the U.S. Army to study mathematics and physics at Temple University in Philadelphia for work related to military electronics. He later served with the Army Signal Corps. But his true calling was art. Rocklin studied life drawing with Abbo Ostrovsky, then earned scholarships to Cooper Union (BFA 1952), the Brooklyn Museum Art School, and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, where he won first prize for sculpture in 1951. A Fulbright Scholarship in 1952 allowed him to travel to Italy, study under renowned Italian artists, and marry his wife Carol. That same year, fellow Fulbright recipient Milton Glaser also traveled to Italy—an early indication of the influential circles Rocklin would inhabit. He became a founding member of the Tanager Gallery, the first of New York’s artist-run 10th Street cooperative galleries. This innovative network helped define the Abstract Expressionist movement of the late 1940s and 1950s. Rocklin’s contributions placed him at the core of this evolution in American art, a fact recognized by his peers and critics alike. His style, often spiritually infused and materially inventive, remained uniquely his own—he later reflected, “I always did my own thing.”

Sculpture, Studio Jewelry, and the Energy of Creation

Rocklin worked across wood, bronze, steel, terra cotta, and plaster, producing deeply considered abstract forms. In his later years—following an auto accident—he began crafting silver jewelry, which he described as “miniature sculptures, wearable art.” These were not decorative accessories but symbolic, sculptural expressions of energy and intention. In his own words: “The silver pieces are in reality miniature sculptures… I find making them a loving adventure.” His artist statement emphasized art as the materialization of invisible forces: “All creation is the crystallization of cosmic forces. The forms we create are the embodiment of those invisible forces.”

This dual practice—large-scale sculpture and intimate wearable work—makes Rocklin's output especially compelling to both studio jewelry collectors and contemporary sculpture curators. The works in the July 24th auction highlight that unique crossover. Teaching, Exhibitions, and a National Footprint Rocklin’s teaching career spanned more than 25 years at the City University of New York, and he taught at numerous other institutions, including the Brooklyn Museum Education Department, American University, the University of California at Berkeley, and Ball State University.
His solo exhibitions included shows at the Tanager Gallery (1956), American University (1956), Oakland Art Museum (1959), Santa Barbara Museum of Art (1959), University of California at Berkeley (1959), and more. He also exhibited in group shows at institutions such as the Whitney Museum of American Art, Claude Bernard Gallery (Paris), Galleria Tibunia (Rome), the Stable Gallery, and the Everhart Museum. His work is held in the permanent collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, as well as private collections of figures such as Walter Chrysler, Mitch Miller, Ned Pines, William Matson Roth, and Colleen Dewhurst.

A Personal Transformation

Though known in youth as a driven and intense individual, Rocklin evolved into a deeply compassionate and spiritual figure later in life. He was known for his work ethic—laboring daily until he physically could not continue—and his dark wit, often playing pranks or telling stories that blended hardship with humor. In his final years, he embraced gentleness and reflection. His passing in 2014, at home in Damascus Township and surrounded by family, was marked by peace and fulfillment.
His poem, written shortly before his death, speaks to his enduring spirituality:

Orange, yellow & blue, I see the light shining bright
Starlight Moonlight, Ever bright, ever bright
Forever bright, forever bright, Forever
And then there was darkness, And then the light subdued the dark

And there was yellow orange blue again, Hallelujah, Shalom
Praise to the everlasting, The Supreme Light, Which shines forever & ever

View Raymond Rocklin’s Work at the July 24th Collectors Auction
Alderfer Auction is proud to present this special selection of Raymond Rocklin’s sculpture and studio jewelry as part of the July 24th, 2025 Collectors Auction. These works span decades of creative exploration and offer collectors and institutions a chance to engage directly with the legacy of an American sculptor whose work unites material, philosophy, and form. Whether you are building a private collection, representing a craft or design museum, or studying mid-century abstraction and studio jewelry, Rocklin’s work represents an opportunity to acquire pieces that are as meaningful as they are visually compelling. Explore the full offering and register to bid at AlderferAuction.com. Experience the depth, energy, and humanity of an artist who made his life—and his art—out of transformation.

Featured Jewelry in upcoming Collectors auction, crafted by artist Raymond Rocklin