United States
Biography
Beth Cavener (b. 1972, Pasadena, California) is an acclaimed American sculptor best known for her stoneware animal sculptures that explore human psychology through expressive, anthropomorphic forms. Based in Helena, Montana, she runs Studio 740, a collaborative workspace and mentorship program for emerging artists.
Daughter of a molecular biologist and a sculptor, Cavener initially studied physics and astronomy at Haverford College before turning to the arts. She earned a BA in Sculpture in 1995 and an MFA in Ceramics from Ohio State University in 2002. Her classical foundation, including training at the Charles H. Cecil Studios in Florence, shaped her technically rigorous yet emotionally charged approach.
Her large-scale sculptures are crafted from hundreds of pounds of stoneware clay, built over steel armatures, then cut, hollowed, reassembled, and painted using latex paint, terra sigillata, or other surface treatments. These creatures, caught in moments of vulnerability or tension, act as psychological portraits, revealing the animal side of human nature.
Cavener has held international residencies in China (Jingdezhen), Italy (La Meridiana), and Japan (Shigaraki), and received major awards including the Virginia A. Groot Foundation Grant (2005), Jean Griffith Foundation Fellowship (2006), and Artist Trust Fellowship (2009).
Her work has been exhibited in prestigious venues such as the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Chazen Museum of Art, and the 21C Museum. She is represented by Jason Jacques Gallery in New York.
Key solo exhibitions include The Other (2017, Jason Jacques Gallery), Come Undone (2012, Claire Oliver Gallery), and On Tender Hooks (2009). Her art bridges the instinctual and the emotional, creating powerful meditations on the human condition and social behavior.
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