Sharon Koskoff

Sharon Koskoff
Full name	Sharon Gail Koskoff
Born	Sharon Koskoff January 24th, 1954 (age 70)
Nationality	American
Occupation	Author, artist
Education	Brooklyn College BA 1974, Brooklyn College MA 1975, New York School of Interior Design 1977.
Parents	Shirley & Rubin “Papa Ruby” Koskoff
Marital status	Single
Website	www.ArtDecoPB.org BySharon.com ArtintheAlley.org

Sharon Koskoff (born January 24th, 1954) is an American artist, author, community activist, designer, educator, mural artist, photographer, preservationist, public speaker, and tour guide.

Early life and education [ citation needed ]

Born in Brooklyn New York, Sharon grew up in a creative environment. Her father owned a ladies' blouse factory where she learned to sew and design fashion. At age 14 Sharon’s older sister commissioned her very first mural and hence discovered her passion for large-scale projects.

As a child, Koskoff grew up in a creative atmosphere playing in her father’s ladies' blouse factory, exploring sewing machines, and designing elaborate costumes for her Barbie Dolls.

She painted her first mural at age 14 when her older sister Cheryl married and asked Sharon to paint a graphic design on the walls of her new apartment.

Koskoff attended Brooklyn College, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Sculpture and Photography in 1974. She became certified in Color Theory in 1977 at the New York School of Interior Design.

After graduation, Koskoff worked in the needlecraft industry and started her own company, New York Needlecraft. Sharon sold her hand-painted custom designs to stores from New York to Florida. She signed all her original artwork “By Sharon”, her signature trademark, that became her website www.BySharon.com.

She moved to Delray Beach, Florida, in December 1985 where she turned her attention to painting murals and coordinating community projects full-time.

Arts education

Sharon Koskoff received the Muse Award of Excellence in Arts Education by the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County in 2014 for her work in the community. Every two years, the Muse Awards recognize outstanding organizations and individuals who have made an impact on the arts and cultural community.

In addition to painting full time, Koskoff taught classes at the Armory Art Center from 1987 to 2002, Very Special Arts (Arts4All) in 1989, Boca Raton School of Arts in 1990, Project Leap for the Center for Creative Education in the 1990s, and the Creative School of Arts at Old School Square from 2003 to 2022.

Koskoff was a museum group tour guide at the Society of the Four Arts from 2016 to 2020. She joined the Florida Humanities Speakers Bureau from 2014 to 2022, traveling throughout the state.

Career [ citation needed ]

Arts career

Sharon Koskoff is the only artist on record to receive eight consecutive grants (1994 – 2002) from the Palm Beach County Cultural Council for the Neighborhood in Artist Residency Program (NARP). This award funded group art projects in multicultural areas. The Community Mural Projects, public murals located throughout Delray Beach, are the results of this effort. Sharon has also painted over 350 murals in the Palm Beach County public school system.

Sharon Koskoff met with Barbara Baer Capitman, the Queen of Art Deco in Miami Beach, who mentored her in Art Deco Preservation. Sharon became the Founding President Art Deco Society of the Palm Beaches in 1987 and continues to serve to this day. She also joined Very Special Arts (Arts4All) in 1987 and is still a member. The same year, Koskoff joined the Armory Art Center as an Art Instructor, teaching until 2002. Between 1988 and 1992, she was the Vice President of Norton Artists’ Guild and was a Founding Board Member of Women in Visual Arts from 1989 to 1992.

Koskoff led the Community Chair Project (2000) where 15 Adirondack Chairs, painted by volunteers, were placed throughout the City of Delray Beach. She led the Delray Beach Flower Festival (2000 and 2003) where 100 at-risk students from Toussaint L’Overture High School created living floral installations using 15,000 live impatiens. She led the Cultural Loop Open Door Project (2003) where 111 doors were painted and installed at Delray Beach City Hall.

Between 1994 and 2002, Koskoff received eight consecutive grants from the Neighborhood Artist in the Residency Program from the Palm Beach County Arts Council. In 2003 she joined Old School Square as an Arts Instructor, serving until the present. From 2010 to 2015 she was Chairperson of Delray Beach Public Art Advisory Board, (PAAB). Koskoff was a Museum Group Tour Guide at the Society of the Four Arts from 2016 to 2020 and Board Secretary at the International Coalition of Art Deco Societies from 2001 to 2023.

From 2001 to 2014, Sharon worked with ten non-for-profit organizations that created 14-foot-tall puppets on wheels that marched in Delray Beach’s First Night New Year’s Eve parades.

In 2010, she partnered with Delray Beach city residents, Lisa and James Quillian, to organize Art in the Alley TM, an annual public art event. Koskoff recruits volunteer artists who paint mural panels which are then installed in the Osceola Park district of Delray Beach. The mission of which is “revitalization through creative community endeavors”. www.ArtintheAlley.org

Cultural leadership roles

Vice President of the Artists’ Guild of the Norton Gallery & School of Art (1988-1992).

Founding Board Member of the Women In The Visual Arts (1989).

Secretary of the Artists of Palm Beach County (2005).

Chairperson of the Delray Beach Public Art Advisory Board (2010 to 2015).

Secretary of the International Coalition of Art Deco Societies (2021 to 2023).

Art Deco preservation

In 1986, Sharon met with Barbara Baer Capitman, the “Queen of Art Deco” in Miami Beach, who mentored her in Art Deco preservation.

In 1987, Sharon Koskoff became the Founding President of the Art Deco Society of the Palm Beaches (ADSPB) a not-for-profit 501 (c) 3 historic preservation organization.

In 1991, Capitman connected Art Deco societies worldwide by initiating the International Coalition of Art Deco Societies (ICADS), a group that fosters networking and global conferences every two years.

Koskoff is an advocate of education and preservation of Art Deco and Twentieth Century art, architecture, and design found in the Palm Beaches. She identified and documented dozens of Art Deco structures and discovered that many of these previously overlooked hidden treasures were the home to “arts and cultural institutions”.

In 1989, she designed and painted the Art Deco architectural elements of the Old National Guard Armory in West Palm Beach. Built in 1939 by William Manly King, the historic structure is now the world class Armory Art Center.

In 2007, Koskoff designed a triangular, neon Art Deco Marquee for the Lake Worth Playhouse built in 1924. Originally the Oakley Theater, it was built by brothers Clarence and Lucien Oakley.

As an Art Deco Color Consultant, Koskoff used an Egyptian palette for the Wenger House design in 2012. Built as a private residence in 1948 in Delray Beach, it has been featured in many publications, on television, and a favorite stop for Art Deco tours.

History was made in the Palm Beaches when Koskoff hosted the 16^th Art Deco World Post-Congress, a three-day tour, in collaboration with the Miami Design Preservation League and ICADS in April 2023. She guided Art Deco enthusiasts from around the globe for the biennial conference entitled “Modernism: Florida’s Hidden Treasures”.

Palm Beach Photographer Joel Cohen dubbed Koskoff as the “Duchess of Deco” continuing Barbara Capitman’s legacy in the historic preservation of Art Deco Modernism.

Personal Life

Sharon Koskoff has worked and lived in Delray Beach Florida since 1985. [ citation needed ]

Books [ citation needed ]

Sharon Koskoff wrote two books for Arcadia Publishing. Photograph credits belong to the author unless otherwise noted. The first book, Art Deco of the Palm Beaches, was written in 2007.

Murals of the Palm Beaches was written in 2018 and was awarded two Silver Medals in 2019: one in the category of Education from the Florida Book Awards and one in the category of Visual Arts from the Florida Authors & Publishers Association.

Awards and Recognition [ citation needed ]

• Hats Off! Award / Nonprofits First - 2023
• Legendary Locals / Arcadia Publications / Janet DeVries, Author - 2016
• Boys & Girls Club / House of Representatives / US Congress - 2015
• Accommodation Alcee L. Hastings
• Muse Awards, Winner Arts Educator Award of Excellence Cultural Council PBC - 2014-2016
• International Coalition of Art Deco Societies / Arts & Cultural Exchange Program, Havana, Cuba - 2013
• Finalist Arts Educator of the Year Muse Awards Cultural Council - 2010
• Finalist Women in Executive Leadership Award - 2009
• Finalist Arts Educator the Year Muse Awards Cultural Council – 2008

Historic Preservation [ citation needed ]

• Art Deco Society of the Palm Beaches, Founding President since 1987
• Boca Raton Historical Society
• Boynton Beach Historical Society
• Delray Beach Historical Society
• Historical Society of Lake Worth
• ICADS International Coalition of Art Deco Societies
• Miami Design Preservation League
• Florida Trust for Historic Preservation
• National Trust for Historic Preservation
• Palm Beach County Historical Society
• Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach

Associations [ citation needed ]

• Armory Art Center
• Cornell Art Museum at Old School Square
• Norton Museum of Art
• Boca Raton Museum of Art
• Lake Worth Playhouse
• Florida Humanities Council Speakers Bureau
• Cultural Council for Palm Beach County
• Public Art Advisory Board of Delray Beach / Chairperson
• Arts 4 All / Very Special Arts, Florida

Public Art Commissions [ citation needed ]

3 G's Gourmet Deli	1991
505 Teen Center	2008
90 Southeast 5th Ave	2014
Alone Together: Corona Crisis Collage	2020
ARC VSA – 4 Murals	2016
Armory Art Center	1995 - 2000
Art & Jazz on the Avenue	1991
Art in Public Places West Palm Beach Aesop's Tables	2017
Art in the AlleyTM	2010 - present
Artigas Art Festival	2000 - 2001
Atlantic Community High School	1997 - 1998
Banyan Creek Elementary School	2005 - 2011
Barton Elementary School	2007 - 2008
Belvedere Elementary School	2003 - 2004
Boca Raton Elementary School	2002
Boca Raton Express Museum Train Depot	2003
Boynton Beach Art In Public Places	2008
Boynton Beach Stage Left Theatre	2013
Boys & Girls Clubs of America of Belle Glade	2014
C.W. Gerstenberg Hospice Children’s Bereavement Room	1992
Carver Middle School	1997 - 2000
Castaways Bar & Grill	1997
Centennial Mural West Palm Beach	1995
Cezanne Jazz Club at Ramada Hotel	1994
City of Aventura Founders Day Festival	2008 - 2010
Clematis Street Bench Project	2004
Coffee Gallery Café	1995 - 1998
Connor Moran Children’s Cancer Foundation	2000
Cornell Art Museum at Old School Square	2008 - 2013
Cox Science Museum & Aquarium	2019
Crosspointe Elementary School	2006
Del Prado Elementary School	1998
Delray Beach Cultural Loop / Community Chair Project	2000 - 2005
Delray Beach Cultural Loop / Open Door Project	2003 - 2004
Delray Beach Flower Festival / Millennium Project	2000
Delray Beach Flower Festival / Toussaint L ‘Overture	2003
Delray Full-Service Center	1995 -1996
Discovery Key Elementary School	2005
Downtown Development Authority of Delray Beach	2021
Eagles Landing Middle School	1998
Environmental Resources Management of Palm Beach	1995
Fire Hydrants of Lake Worth Veterans	2007
First Night Delray Beach Giant Puppets	2001- 2014
First Night Seven Hole Miniature Golf	2004- 2006
Galilee Retirement Village	1995
Gators Galore	2012
Good Samaritan Hospital	1995
Greenacres Elementary School	2004
Hamburger Heaven Clematis Street	2012
Hatch 1121 ~ Trilogy: Art, Architecture & Community	2022
Hidden Oaks Elementary	2010
High Water Line Delray Beach	2015
Home Safe / A Place for Children	1996 -1997
Hotel Biba Showtel	2004
HRS Lobby & HRS Pediatric AIDS	1995-1996
Indian Ridge School	2007
JCC  350 Years of Jewish History in America	2004
JCC Hanukkah-fest	2003
JCC Charlie Brown Theatre Production	2003
JCC Wild Things: A Child’s Right to Read Installation	2003
Jefferson Davis Middle School	1995
Juneteenth! Spady Museum	2013 - 2015
Juvenile Justice of Palm Beach County	2013
Juvenile Justice of Port St. Lucie	2008
Keyes to the Cities, Kretzer Pianos	2013
Lake Worth Middle School	2012
Lake Worth Street Painting	1994 - 2010
Lincoln Elementary School	2007
Loggers Run Middle School	2001
Love’s Drug Building	1994
March of Dimes	2009
Mario’s Market	1995
Morikami Park Elementary School	1999
Nine Arch Murals of Lake Worth	2012
Northmore Elementary School	2002
Norton Museum of Art	1999 - 2000
Odyssey Middle School	2001
Office Depot Corporate Headquarters	1998
Orchard View Elementary School	2010
Osborne Center / For the Children	2008 - 2009
Oscar's Restaurant	1990
Palm Beach County Millennium Council	2001
Palm Beach Gardens Hospital	1990
Palm Beach International Airport	1995
Palm Beach Public School	1996
Palm Beach Zoo at Dreher Park	2000 - 2001
Palm Springs Elementary School	1996
Palm Springs Middle School	2007
Palmetto Elementary School	1996
Parker’s Kitchen Building	1995
Pine Grove Elementary School	2014
Pine Grove School of the Arts	1996 - 1997
Pineapple Grove Archway Base	2007
Plumosa School of the Arts	2011 - 2012
Post Card Murals Sent to the US Troops	1991
Puppetry Art Center of the Palm Beaches	2011
Quest Theatre	1990s
Ranger Construction	1990s
Resource Depot Jell-O Shots!	2014
Roosevelt Elementary School	2005
Roosevelt Middle School	2012
Rosemont Park Words to Live By	2007
Royce Hotel	1987
SD Spady Elementary School	1999 - 2001
Solid Waste Authority Palm Beach County	1992
South Florida Science Museum	1992 - 2022
St. Mary’s Hospital	2005
Sugar Sand Science Park	1995
Sunfest Banner Project Morikami Museum of Art	2007
Sunrise Park Elementary School	2002
Trilogy One Woman Retrospective	2022
U. B Kinsey/Palmview School of the Arts	2004
United Way Day Care	1997
Very Special Arts (Arts4All)	1987 - 2024
Washington Elementary School	1997
West Palm Beach Centennial	1994
Westgate Belvedere Home CRA Totem Sculpture	2013
Westgate CRA	2010 - present
Westward Elementary School	2008
Whispering Pines Elementary School	1997
YMCA of Boca Raton	2005

References