IRMA CAVAT
A native of Brooklyn, Irma Cavat became a professional artist in her early 20s. She studied with Russian sculptor, Alexander Archipenko and at the New School for Social Research in New York, and modeled for French surrealist painter, Renee Magritte. Her creative impulses continued to propel her in many directions. Cavat designed the windows of FAO Schwartz toy store on Fifth Avenue, illustrated science fiction books, and designed her own jewelry. As a young artist in the early 1950s, she worked with Willem De Kooning and became part of the Abstract Expressionist group, which included Jackson Pollack and Larry Rivers. Her awards include residencies at Yaddo in New York, the McDowell Colony in Maine, the Djerassi Foundation in Northern California, and a Fulbright Grant to Rome, Italy. She resided in Rome from 1955 to 1964, where her daughters, Karina (of New York City) and Nika (of Venice, California) were born. Cavat then moved to Santa Barbara and became a Professor of Art at UCSB from 1965 to 2000. It was during this early move back to the United States that she began to paint figuratively. The house in Santa Barbara – a hundred year old converted barn – became the locus for visiting artists, writers, filmmakers, and academics from around the globe. It also offered on-going inspiration for Cavat’s subject as she grew pomegranates, avocadoes, and a bountiful flower garden. From the mid-80s until the time of his death in 2002, sculptor George Rickey used her California home as a winter studio. In 1995, in collaboration with landscape architect, Isabelle Greene and Walter Kohn, a Nobel laureate in theoretical physics, Cavat helped create the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation's Sadako Peace Garden on the 50th anniversary of the Hiroshima tragedy. She has lived for extended periods of time in Paris and Provence, Athens, and London. An avid traveler, she has also journeyed to the open markets of Morocco, Tenamen Square in China, the Taj Mahal in India, and throughout parts of Turkey, Japan, Hungary, the Baltic States, and Russia. Each country she visited offered rich motivation for her paintings. Cavat continues to reside in Santa Barbara. Her family includes grandchildren, Hunter and Aurora.
Born November 23, 1928, Brooklyn, New York
CONTACT: Natalie Grey
The Happening Gallery
4045 Lincoln Blvd.
Marina Del Rey, CA 90292
310-305-2787
Education
1952 Academie de la Grande Chaumiere, Paris, France (drawing)
1950-1951 New York University, Washington Square, New York (drawing)
1948-1950 Jose De Creeft, New York, (sculpture)
1945-1947 Alexander Archipenko, New York City and Woodstock, New York (sculpture)
1944-1950 The New School for Social Research, New York (Art History, Gestalt Psychology,
and painting)
1942-1945 Brooklyn Museum Art School, Brooklyn, New York
1942 Academy of Allied Arts, New York
Solo Exhibitions
1994 Cline Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1989 Preston Burke Gallery, Detroit, Michigan
1988 Allan Hancock College, Santa Maria, California, Arpel Gallery, Santa Barbara, California
1986 Ventura College, Ventura, California
1986 Feingarten Galleries, Los Angeles, California
1984 Kennedy Galleries, New York, New York
1984 Arlington Galleries, Santa Barbara, California
1981 M. Shore Gallery, Montecito, California
1979 Gallery Camino Real, Boca Raton, Florida
1978 The Seven Deadly Sins, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, California
1977 Gallery PM, Santa Barbara, California
Arwin Galleries, Detroit, Michigan
1974 Arwin Galleries, Detroit, Michigan
1974 Paintings in the Round: Homage to the Still Life, Fairtree Gallery, New York
1973 Allan Hancock College, Santa Maria, California
1971 Newport Art Association, Newport Beach, California
Main Street Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
Arwin Galleries, Detroit, Michigan
Sherman Foundation Center Gallery, Corona del Mar, California
1970 Il Tribbio Gallery, Trieste, Italy
Mural, Hotel Plaka, Athens, Greece
Drawings, Lithographs, Paintings, Scorpio Gallery, Rome, Italy
1969 Paintings and Drawings, Arwin Galleries, Detroit, Michigan
Feingarten Galleries, Los Angeles, California
New Media Gallery, Ventura College, Ventura, California
1968 Feingarten Galleries, Los Angeles, California
Forsythe Gallery, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Arwin Galleries, Detroit, Michigan
1967 A Street in Athens, Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, Arizona
Arwin Galleries, Detroit, Michigan
1966 A Street in Athens, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, California
1964 Galleria Piazza di Spagna, Rome, Italy
Galleria Scorpio, Rome, Italy
1963 Galleria Scorpio, Rome, Italy
1962 Grinnell Galleries, Detroit, Michigan
1952 Galerie Huit, Paris, France
1951 Galleria IL Tribbio, Trieste, Italy
1950 Rosenthal Gallery, New York, New York
1948 Mural for Haitian Government, Centre d’Art, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti
Group Exhibitions
2011 Sweet Tooth, The Happening Gallery, Marina Del Rey, CA
2003 The Years at UCSB, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
1991 Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, California
1990 Faculty Show, The Club, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
1989 Pittori Stranieri Gallery, Perugia, Italy
1988 Faculty Show, The Club, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
1985 Faculty Show, The Club, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
1984 West Art Publishing, St. Paul, Minneapolis
Easter Exhibition, Bartole and Ashton, Santa Barbara, California
Two Still Life Painters, Irma and Karina, Atkinson Galleries, City
College, Santa Barbara, California
1983 Faculty Show, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, September-October
American Still-Life Painting, Kennedy Galleries, New York, New York
West Art Publishing, St. Paul, Minneapolis
1982 West Art Publishing, traveling catalogue, Minneapolis
Arlington Gallery, Santa Barbara, California
Kennedy Galleries, New York City, Exhibition of 20 major works.
1981 Elaine De Kooning and Her Inadvertent Collection, “Homage to Still Life”, San Francisco Museum, San Francisco, California
Contemporary Still Life and Floral Painting, Kennedy Galleries,
New York, New York
1980 Painters of the Pacific Rim, Pace-Price Gallery, San Francisco, California
Four Western Artists, American Dance Machine, New York, New York
American Master Painters, Kennedy Galleries, New York, New York
Faculty Exhibition, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
1979 Jewish Artist on California Faculties, Magnes Museum, San Francisco, California
Santa Barbara Arts Festival, M. Shore and Son Gallery, Santa Barbara, California American Academy of Arts and Letters, Invitational, New York, New York
1978 Galerie du Dragon, Paris, France
1977 The Gift, Feingarden Galleries, Los Angeles, California
1976 Arwin Galleries, Annual, Detroit, Michigan
1975 Annual Faculty Exhibition, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
SOHO Gallery, New York, New York
1972 Annual Faculty Exhibition, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
1971 Dohan Gallery, Los Angeles, California
1970 Gallery Di Silva, Santa Barbara, California
1969 I.C.A. Gallery London, England
1968 Drawing in California, New Media Gallery, Ventura, California.
Faculty Exhibition, University Art Museum, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara Collections, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, California
1967 New Techniques, Unitarian Church, Santa Barbara, California
Newcomers, Lecture-Demonstration, Santa Barbara, California
Faculty Exhibition, University Art Museum, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
Critic’s Choice Exhibition, Long Beach Museum, Long Beach, California
1964 Esther Bear Gallery, Santa Barbara, California
Faculty Exhibition, University Art Museum, UC, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California
1961 The Zellerbach Collection, San Francisco Museum of Art, San Francisco, California
The Artist Depicts the Artist, Nordness Gallery, New York, New York
1960 Ten Americans, Piazza Venezia, Rome, Italy
Festival of Two Worlds, Invitational Spoleto, Italy
Biannual Exhibition, Art Institute of Detroit, Detroit, Michigan
Five Women Painters, Invitational, Old Town Art Center, Chicago, Illinois
Galleria Appunto, Milan, Italy
1959 American Academy in Rome, Italy
1958 Festival of Two Worlds, Spoleto, Italy
American Academy in Rome, Italy
Galleria Schneider, Rome Italy
1957 American Academy in Rome, Italy
Galleria Gratticielo, Milan, Italy
Galleria Schneider, Rome Italy
1955 Recent Drawings USA, Invitational Exhibition, Museum of Modern Art, NY, New York
Annual Invitational Exhibition, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, New York
1954 Annual Invitational Exhibition, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, New York
1947 Provincetown Art Association, Invitational, Massachusetts
Selected Articles and Reviews
2008 Patty Look Lewis Gallery, Casa Magazine, “Brush Strokes that Elicit Subtext” Woodard, Josef, Santa Barbara News Press, “Nature Once Removed
2002 Woodard, Josef, Santa Barbara, California, Art Scene, “Painting above and Beneath The Surface.”
1999 Walker, Marina, Santa Barbara News Press, “Small Landscapes, Large Objects.” 1998 San Luis Obispo County Telegram-Tribune, “Mother and Daughter talk about the Weather.”
1994 Deats, Suzanne, Santa Fe, New Mexico, Focus, “’Memorable Moments:’ Irma Cavat
sees the Whole History in the Details of Everyday.”
1984 Kennedy Galleries, News brief number 1, volume II, “Tabby” Prize.
1966 Los Angeles Times, April.
1964 Il Messagero, Daily American, Rome, Italy.
1963 Il Tempo; Fiera Letteraria; Daily American, Rome, Italy.
1961 New York Herald Tribune.
1960 Il Messagero, Il Tempo, Daily American, Rome, Italy.
Ann Arbor News, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Detroit News.
1958 Chicago Tribune, Chicago Daily News.
Il Messagero, Daily American, Spoleto, Italy and New York Herald-Tribune:
“Festival of Two Worlds.”
1955 Art News; Arts, New York Times, New.
New York Herald-Tribune, “Drawings.”
1954 Brooklyn Museum, New York, Art News, March.
1952 Galerie Huit, Paris France, Arts; Combat; L’Actualite, Paris.
1949 Provincetown News, Art Association, Provincetown Masschusetts.
1948 Centre d’ Art, Journal d’Haiti, Port-au-Prince Haiti, July.
1947 Provincetown News, Art Association, Provincetown, Massachusetts.
Commissions, Awards, Grants
2000 Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, Sadako Peace Garden, UCSB
1985 Benaventura, Trompé l’oueil Murals- commission
1984 Djerassi Foundation – Resident Fellowship
1983 Five Points Trompé l’oueil Murals- commission
1980 American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, New York City
1979 American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, New York City
1950 Yaddo Fellowship, Saratoga Springs, New York
1956 New York University Scholarship to the Art School
1957 Rome, Italy- Fulbright
1958 Rome, Italy- Fulbright
Collections
Albion College, Michigan
Glendale College, Phoenix, Arizona
The Bishop Vogeley, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Mrs. Gertrude Berg, New York City
Nettie Rosenstein, New York City
John Ciardi, Metuchen, New Jersey
Gardner Peabody, Boston, Massachusetts
Rod Steiger, Hollywood, California
Mr. Mrs. Lrving Stone, Beverly Hills, California
Mme Claire Booth Luce, The Zellerbach Collection, San Francisco
M. Sandoz, Switzerland
Senor F. Echavarria, Bogota, Columbia
The Johnson Collection, London
Laurence Fleischman, Detroit
The Detroit Institute of Arts, Michigan
add to mylist
email this artist
report abuse
contact us for help
