Cal Lane

Shovels

2016

Sculptor and metal artist Cal Lane has garnered international acclaim for transforming industrial steel I-beams, shovels, car hoods and dumpsters into lacy, decorative works of art. While her sculptures can be interpreted as a challenge to gender stereotypes — the transformation of hard, “masculine” steel into “feminine” lace filigree — Lane suggests her art reaches beyond that.

“I see steel as a metaphor for confrontation, a thing that represents the walls put up by the society I was born into,” she has said. “Steel feels like the perfect material to carve into, to create the contrasts and conflicts that I myself struggle with.”

Born in 1968 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Lane trained as a welder and was a hairdresser in her mother’s salon on Vancouver Island before she turned to build a career in art. She earned her BFA at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design and attended the State University of New York, where she specialized in sculpture and earned her MFA.

As an artist, Lane became interested in exploring gender roles through Conceptual art. Although critics have compared her work to that of American minimalist sculptor Richard Serra, known for his spiral steel sculptures, Lane cuts into steel objects, creating ornate patterns that reference femininity in her figurative and abstract sculptures. This is demonstrated in works such as Pantie (2017), Veiled Hood #2 (2014) and Grace Invasion (2011). 

In addition to her sculptures, Lane produced a series of wallpaper drawings in 2017, such as True Barring, Mind Your Bubble and Poking Holes in the Ocean, depicting military submarines on cloud patterns. The drawings explore the perception of submarines as phallic war objects in contrast to their innocent depictions in popular culture. 

Lane’s sculptures and illustrations have been exhibited in numerous international shows throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, Belgium, France and the United Kingdom. Her works are also highly sought by collectors of Contemporary and abstract art.

On 1stDibs, discover a range of original Cal Lane sculptures, prints and drawings.