Jeff Stewart was born in The Dalles ,Oregon in  1941. He grew up enjoying hunting, fishing, and skiing on Mt. Hood. He obtained a Master of Fine Arts degree in 1967 from the University of Oregon and did additional studies in Europe and Japan. He lives with his wife in an owner built log home in the foothills of the Cascade mountains in Wasco County. He has been teaching art at Columbia Gorge Community College since l979. For many years, he has expressed his love and appreciation of wildlife through his sculpture and is currently drawing inspiration from local history and his own memories of Celilo Falls. He is presently sculpting a 30 foot high by 4 foot diameter Columbia River wildlife cedar totem for the city of Mosier, Oregon.