Steve Roden: American contemporary artist and musician dies at 59

Famous sound artist and record producer Steve Roden worked in the fields of visual art, and sound characterized by amplified quiet sounds to release complex and rich soundscapes.

Roden made music across lowercase, ambient, and minimalism genres.

The California native began his artistic journey in 1985, and went on to produce many albums, including Forms of Paper, which was commissioned by the Los Angeles public library.

Many of Roden’s work have been featured in several exhibitions and included in many museums such as “the Las Vegas Art Museum, Las Vegas; the Mercosur Biennial in Porto Allegre, Brazil; the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego; the Serpentine Gallery, London; the Drawing Room, London; the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, La Jolla; the Sculpture Center, New York; the Centre Georges Pompidou Museum, Paris; the UCLA Hammer Museum, Los Angeles & Miami MOCA, Miami, and the Drawing Center, New York.”

Aside from the keyboard, Roden played the synthesizer, sampler, and other contemporary instrument.

Roden passed away on September 6, 2023, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. He was aged 59.

Roden had been diagnosed with the disease since 2017.