Analysis Of Beth Cavener's Don T Go

The sculpture, Don’t Go, is composed by Beth Cavener. Creativity has always

been in the family, her mother was an art teacher. She actually went to college for

science, and her last semester changed over to the arts. After finishing college for arts,

she went on to apprentice for sculptor Alan Lequire. She was then drawn to the

surrealist movement of the 1920’s. When she was finished with her masters she spent

her residency at the Archie Bray Foundation and the Clay Studio in Philadelphia. She

worked on life-size and larger scale works. Cavener is now 45 years old, and working

as a full time artist in Montana. (Cola) She is known for her style of stoneware animal

sculptures. Don’t Go is a baby bunny that represents the emotions of when a child is

separated from their parents.

Cavener calls on her own parenting experience as well as
subject matter, cool monochromatic harmony, and implied motion to communicate a
child’s vulnerability and fear of being alone.
Subject matter is what the piece is about and what it means.

This

representational piece is a bunny that looks like it is scared, and looks as if it is cuddled

up trying to escape a certain emotion. The arms are in close and the ears are pointed

down. Subject matter goes along with parenting experience for Cavener. Parenting

experience plays a tremendous role in this piece. The emotion in the sculpture comes

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from the emotions she feels for her 6 month year old baby. Cavener saw the fear that

was installed in her baby when her and her husband would leave. She could tell that the

asbense caused him stress and was overwhelming. Doing the piece made her confront

the fears she had for herself. Being an adult still comes with the feeling with

abandonment, and having so many people around you but still feeling lonely. (Cavener)

This is a theme that plays throughout most of her work. Another important factor in

Don’t Go is cool monochromatic harmony.

Cavener uses many different visual elements to help the person understand the

concept of the piece. One visual element is monochromatic harmony. Monochromatic

harmony is using one single base hue and then using the different shades and hints

of
that single base hue. She uses all the different shades of blue to help depict sadness.
The simplicity of just one color and the one colors shades creates an empty slate for the
heavy feeling of fear. Letting Cavener create fear in other creative ways. Another way
she creates fear of a baby being alone through implied motion.
Implied motion is the illusion that a piece of art is moving. The piece Don’t Go
possess implied motion by the position of the bunny. The arms and legs pulling in
towards the face indicates the bunny is very uncomfortable and not in its regular relaxed
state. This ties into how she goes to show her personal experience with her son. Also,
Cavener positions every crevice and wrinkle in a specific spot to show what way the
bunny is turning. One example would be in the bunny’s hand. If a human were to bend
their hand up to their face, their knuckles indent, and there becomes a wrinkle on the
wrist. She put those elements to make it look very realistic and not stagnant.
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Cavener creates a child's vulnerability and also fear of being alone in one
sculpture. The subject matter and parenting experience creates the bunny to resemble
a baby. The color harmony of the bunny creates space of fear through other ways.
Implied motion through the position of the arms, legs and ears creates the body
language to seem scared. The parenting experience of Cavener, the subject matter, the
color monochromatic harmonies all come together to create a child's vulnerability of
being alone.