Bio
Craig Kaviar has established a niche for himself by combining artistic form with everyday function. When asked about his work he says, “I create cool classical artwork from the inferno of the forge.” He designs handrails, gates, furniture, candlesticks, sculpture and other accessories and hardware for the home. Although metal working skills and techniques date back thousands of years, he uses them with a modern sensibility.
Craig is energized by the collaborative process and enjoys working with designers, architects, artists and clients. He often includes imagery that his clients have an association with in his commissioned works. His award-winning functional art has been documented in Southern Accents, American Crafts, Arts Across Kentucky, the HGTV show “Modern Masters” and many books on contemporary metalworking. His public artworks include a bronze sculpture in front of the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts, five-foot-high bronze door handles at the entrance of the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, gates and grills at First Unitarian Church and Christ Church Cathedral, the Holocaust memorial at Temple Congregation Adath Israel Brith Sholom and pool gates at the Jewish Community Center, all in Louisville. He is also represented in many private collections throughout the United States.
The primary forge where Craig heats metal to 3,000 degrees has been converted to run on waste vegetable oil. Neighborhood restaurants kindly provide him with fuel to help reduce the forge’s carbon footprint while allowing him to produce high quality work.