Peter Schifrin | |
Nationality: | American |
Birth Date: | 1958 1, mf=y |
Birth Place: | Los Angeles, California, United States |
Height: | 6-2.5 (190 cm) |
Weight: | 185 lbs (84 kg) |
Country: | United States |
Sport: | Fencing |
Event: | epee |
Collegeteam: | San Jose State University (BA Boston University (MFA) |
Club: | Fencing Center of San Jose |
Show-Medals: | yes |
Peter Schifrin (born January 5, 1958) is an American Olympic epee fencer and sculptor.
Schifrin was born in Los Angeles, California, lived in Santa Rosa, California, and is Jewish.[1] [2] His father was a professional artist.[3] After attending San Jose State University, where he earned a BA as a fine arts major, he earned a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) from Boston University.[1] [4]
Schifrin began fencing at age 13.[5] While in high school he won the Junior National Epee Championship in both 1976 and 1977.[1]
He attended and fenced for San Jose State University on a fencing scholarship from 1979 through 1982.[6] [1] [5] There, Schifrin was a four-time All-American, and had a 266-35 win-loss record.[1] He won the 1982 NCAA Epee National Championship—thereby becoming the university's first and only NCAA champion in men's fencing.[1]
Schifrin represented the United States at the 1979 Pan American Games team, winning a gold medal, and competed at the 1979 Summer Universiade and the 1981 Summer Universiade.[1] He won a silver medal in epee at the 1981 Maccabiah Games.
He competed in the team épée event at the 1984 Summer Olympics.[7]
Schifrin was inducted into the San Jose State University Sports Hall of Fame, in the Class of 2005.[1]
Schifrin became a poet and an artist, trained in figurative and portrait sculpture, and began making textured works in both metal and clay.[8] [5] He has had multiple commissioned works in California: he designed and executed a bronze firefighter in San Ramon, a bronze "Wounded Man" for San Mateo's Performing Arts Center, and a set of bronze coyotes for downtown San Jose.[7] [9] Schifrin also created "Wings," a series of three sculptures installed on Martha's Vineyard.[7] Schifrin and another sculptor, David Duskin, created "J-Line," which was commissioned by another fencing Olympian, Stephen Trevor, a private equity manager.[7] He has works on display with the Art of the Olympians.[10] [11] [12]
Schifrin also teaches as an instructor at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.[7] [5] He was voted into the National Sculpture Society in 2011.[13]