Sharon Sklar of West Hartford is a sculptor. As a child, she constantly created art and worked with her hands. She earned a BFA in sculpture from the School of Fine Arts at Boston University, immersing herself in anatomy studies during her first two years and creating life-sized nude sculptures complete with skeletal base foundations and exact muscle renderings.

Sharon Sklar

Sklar’s growing appreciation for the human body was stoked by the body-mind movement just taking shape in the early ‘70s. She studied massage therapy and nutrition and soon learned about Rolfing®, a bodywork technique designed to “organize and integrate the body.” After experiencing the second of ten sessions, Sklar knew that she had found her life’s work – sculpting bodies back to ultimate health.
This year, Sklar celebrates her 30th year as a healer. A Certified Rolf Practitioner, she completed her Basic Rolfing® Certification in 1981 and earned Advanced Rolfing®  Certification in 1988 from the Rolf Institute® of Structural Integration in Boulder, Colo. She bases her work on the understanding that pain is a function of imbalance, not of age.
“Rolfing® is a life-changing series that benefits all people in one form or another,” Sklar says. “From mothers who never felt the same after giving birth, to teenagers growing up straight and strong, to older adults negating old injury patterns to gracefully move through life, my work is inspiring and never dull. Watching my clients let go and unfold is a fantastic experience I am proud to have experienced for 30 years.”
Once considered alternative therapy, Rolfing® has entered the mainstream medical world.” “The technique has now become ‘complementary’ therapy, with hospitals realizing that billions of dollars are being spent out-of-pocket for ‘unconventional’ care,” she says. “Now, most hospitals are offering many supplemental practices to enhance wellness.”
A Bloomfield native, Sklar grew up attending Beth Hillel Synagogue, where she celebrated her bat mitzvah and confirmation. During high school, she was a member of United Synagogue Youth, and was very active with Hillel at Boston University. She is now involved at Congregation Tikvoh Chadoshoh in Bloomfield.
She was recently moved to take on another healing activity, this time with her dog.
She and Boscoboy are just completing Delta Pet Therapy Partner Training.
“I was inspired to volunteer with my dog when my dad was at the Hebrew Home,” she says. “I saw how many people in the lobby responded with outstretched arms and smiles to a dog coming in. Hopefully we will be a familiar sight there as soon as we are fully certified over the summer.”
To mark National Rolfing®  Awareness Week, May 14-22, Sklar will give a free informational talk at the West Hartford Senior Center, 15 Starkel Road, on Wednesday, May 18 at 7 p.m. For more information call (860) 561-4337.
She will offer a second free talk on Thursday, May 26 at 7 p.m. at the Farmington Library, 6 Monteith Dr. Info: (860) 673-6791