Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators

On canvas, other surfaces and through the materials selected for his sculpted work, versatile Pittsburgh artist Ray Sokolowski has compiled a thoroughly insightful recollection of a rich life fully observed. His documentation of that journey combines a history of family events and the dwellings and neighborhoods that framed them with an eclectic range of sights and situations – commonplace and decidedly not – that captured his interest over the years. While Ray’s work conveys his distinctive interpretations of his life’s respective subjects, it is also representative of a post-impressionistic style that has established him as a figure of substance in the Pittsburgh arts community. Ray’s artistic approach has led to a number of commissions from clients who specify the focus and painting-versus-sculpture medium of the assignments being funded.

Ray recently received the Best of Show Award for his painting, “South 18th Street” at the Pittsburgh Society Illustrators “My America: An Illustrated Experience” exhibition at the Senator John Heinz History Center which runs from October, 2025 through September, 2026.

Ray’s most recent sculptural achievement is a cast & carved replica of Art Rooney’s first football team, “The Hope Harvey Football Club, 1923” that is now a part of the permanent collection of the Pittsburgh Steelers and is on display in the Acrisure Stadium Hall of Honor Museum. The sculpture was created in Hydrostone plaster and consists of 23 figures standing in a row measuring 15 in. high x 8 ft. long. Given his 33-year marriage to illustrator Kathy Rooney and their formation of Rooney Ray Arts, Inc., it’s probably no surprise that Ray’s artistic focus would be drawn to the roots of this prominent local business operated by his wife’s extended family. The first edition of this sculpture, cast in nickel resin, is a part of the Hardy Family Art Collection at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort. The second edition was a part of the Pittsburgh Steelers 75th Anniversary Exhibit at the Pro Football Hall of Fame and was subsequently on extended display at the Senator John Heinz History Center. It was eventually purchased by an investment banker in Boston, Ma.

 In  2018 Ray was commissioned by Saint Bonaventure University campus in New York to create a 5-pc life sized cast bronze sculpture of Saints Francis and Clare of Assisi sitting on a bench alongside their four-legged friends, a wolf and a cat. (Shown at the top of this page is a photo of Ray doing a final foundry check on his bronze casting of Saint Clare.)

Ray graduated from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in 1963 and immediately landed a job as a glassware designer. After just six months at his first job, he left and joined the Navy. It was the Vietnam war era. He was assigned to the submarine service that patrolled the southeastern coast of the United States.

After his time in the navy, in 1969, Ray found a job as a team artisan for F. W. Kestle Display Company in Pittsburgh, PA. His tasks included assisting in metal sculpting and designing retail window displays. He also sculpted works for St. Hyacinth Catholic Catholic Church in Monesson, PA including the altar, tabernacle and stations of the cross.

In 1982, he found a job at the Carnegie Museum of Art as an Installation Specialist. For 24 years, Ray would mat, frame, install works of art and create mounts, plus ship and receive various works of art. He was also responsible for hand-lettering all exhibition wall texts before this task was produced by the vinyl decal process. Ray’s main reason for wanting to work at The Carnegie was so that he could be close to and have hands-on experience with the artworks of the masters. Ray spent his evenings and weekend time away from the gallery doing sculpting and painting. Once he felt the need to switch up his life again, he left the Carnegie Museum of Art to became a full time painter and sculptor. The years of working with famous paintings and sculptures have greatly inspired his art style and how he uses his tools and mediums. His artistic technique continues to transform with each artwork he makes. When asked to describe his painting style, he says, “I evolve, I evolve, I evolve. I don’t want to be static.”

Ray’s paintings and sculptures evoke happiness and movement with their flowing brushstrokes and whimsical figures. He creates with the intention of inviting the viewer into self-discovery and peace. He masterfully summed up his positive outlook on life and appreciation for art in one statement: “Everything you see in this world, there is an artist behind it. Everything is art and art is everything.”