I first became aware of Steve Cieslawski shortly after opening CFM Gallery in SoHo. Although I had a good idea of what direction I wanted it to take in the art it showed, I was still in flux as to which artists would be exhibited. Steve showed me some very interesting and exceedingly well-done shadow box collages. I told him at the time that I liked them very much, but they were 'not right' for what I was doing. I did, however, notice an angel inhabiting the background of one of the pieces. I asked who had originally painted it and was pleasantly surprised to hear that it was not decoupage, but rather, an oil on board by Steve.

From that moment I knew that Steve had to paint! With encouragement he began to paint in earnest. Over the course of the next years he shared with me the work he was doing and his paintings began to take on a singular life and direction that culminated in his joining the roster of CFM Gallery Artists.

His sense of story telling, facility with the paint and his refusal to accept anything from himself other than his best efforts exemplify his work. As many other great painters, past and contemporary, he has gone about creating a mythology that, while anchored in historical prospective, is uniquely his own. The recognition of a Cieslawski painting as being his and his alone is immediate.

It is a great honor to be the first gallery to present Steve Cieslawski, painter.

Neil Zukerman