Stephen Soreff, Sculptor and Teacher

Stephen Soreff, a sculptor who had taught design for many years at C.W. Post College of Long Island University, died of lung cancer on April 23 at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. He was 85 years old.

Mr. Soreff created found-object assemblages, which were exhibited at such galleries as Solar in East Hampton and at the Whitney Museum in New York City. Zachary Soreff of New York City, one of Mr. Soreff’s sons, said “his work was very much influenced by architecture, technology, and engineering.” His career at C.W. Post ranged from the early 1970s to the early 1990s.

He was born on Feb. 2, 1931, in the Bronx to Stephen Mayer Soreff and the former Jeanne Goldring. He grew up in Brooklyn and earned a degree in engineering from Brooklyn College, working for a time as a draftsman. He was drafted into the Army during the Korean War but was stationed in Germany and did not see conflict. His service to his country was said to have impacted his work as an artist, however. He and Helen Soreff, a painter whose work is in the permanent collection of the Whitney Museum, were married in 1960. She died in 1998.

His family said his lifelong interests included politics and culture as well as art. He enjoyed the South Fork, often remaining for six months of the year over the five decades he had a house here, and enjoyed going to restaurants, gallery openings, and film screenings. “He was a very friendly, popular guy. He was superintelligent. He was like an encyclopedia. He loved telling jokes. A lot of people knew him and loved him,” Zachary Soreff said. In his assemblages, “he would create anything from swords to high-heeled shoes to model airplanes. It was very interesting and challenging work,”

In addition to Zachary Soreff, Mr. Soreff is survived by another son, Alexander Soreff, and a brother, Richard Allen Soreff, both of New York City.

A private burial will take place on Sunday at Green River Cemetery in Springs, and a memorial service hosted by Mr. Soreff’s sons is planned for 4 p.m. that day at his house at 26 Whooping Hollow Road in East Hampton.