The phrase "a stern presence" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe someone who has a serious or authoritative demeanor that commands respect or attention.
Example: "The new principal walked into the room with a stern presence, immediately quieting the chatter of the students."
Alternatives: "an imposing figure" or "a commanding aura".
This was a bacchanalian rock'n'roll era famed for sex and drugs but Judge Gary Klausner, a stern presence, kept testimony focused on money, memory and music.
A stern presence on the bench, Judge Brieant (pronounced BRY-ent) issued rulings or oversaw settlements in cases involving race and gender discrimination; whether Alcoholics Anonymous is akin to a religion; and the separation of church and state, in a dispute involving a Hindu god.
There's a stern presence to her delivery of songs such as "The Step And The Walk", and particularly the single "Send A Little Love Token"; and with her odd dialect twist – part-Cockney, part- European – she sounds at times like a bluesier Siouxsie.
More decorative than earlier forms, they seem more involved with the nature of painting than with that of the cross itself, but their dense blacks give them a stern, mournful presence.
A stern, maternal presence with a fondness for giving out diet and exercise advice to anyone who came within 10 feet of her, she was notoriously strict with her models, often housing newcomers in her own home so she could "keep a close eye on them so they'd stay out of trouble and make their early-morning appointments".
He was a fine foil for the pair of incestuous lovers whose passion simmers and flickers even in his stern presence.
The model considers a Brownian coagulation kernel and assumes that interactions between particles can be described through the DLVO theory, where the presence of a Stern layer is accounted for.
The transient double layer dynamics was simulated using the modified Poisson Nernst Planck (MPNP) model with a Stern layer and accounting for the presence of the electrode.
Where Jon Stewart's persona (much like that of another "Daily Show" veteran, John Oliver, on his "Last Week Tonight") is of a sensible man driven to distraction by the insanity of the world and the hypocrisy of the media, and Colbert's was (to reduce it to its outer shell) of a stern, self-loving nitwit, Wilmore's presence is friendly and avuncular.
Far from being a stern military figure, he has a softly-spoken but charismatic presence, often seen smiling and known for emotional speeches.
The associate artistic director, Victor Barbee, was a stern but human Lord Capulet, and the ballet mistress Susan Jones a warmly fluttering presence as the Nurse, Juliet's true mother.
