Nancy Shaver (b. 1946, Appleton, NY; lives and works in Jefferson, New York) is known for her signature visual vocabulary of blockers, boxes, spacers, and sentinels. Shaver mixes modest materials with objects, carefully considering placement and adding color or mark-making if desired. The notions of a multitude of possibilities in tandem with the close juxtaposition of different parts are foundational to Shaver’s practice. For example, the Blocker itself along with the Box, are cubic forms which lend themselves to infinite combinations, be it in color, pattern, or texture. Central to Shaver’s work is examining the boundaries between fine art and craft art as influenced by her rural and working-class roots.
She holds a BFA from the Pratt Institute. Shaver is a 2010 Guggenheim Foundation Fellow.
Shaver has been exhibiting at the Gallery since 2015. She has had solo exhibitions at F, Houston (2024); Parker Gallery, Los Angeles (2021); The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield (2015); and Feature Inc., New York, NY (2011). She has also been included in group exhibitions at Time & Space Limited, Hudson (2025); Matthew Marks Gallery, New York (2025); MAMOTH, London, UK (2024); National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (2023); and the Venice Biennale (2017). Shaver’s works are in public collections at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; Hammer Museum, Los Angeles; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; The Tang Teaching Museum, Saratoga Springs; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; and the Rubell Museum, Washington, D.C.