NEW YORK, NY.- This year,
Cavalier Galleries marks its 40th anniversary, offering a moment to reflect on a gallery that has quietly built a significant legacy across exhibitions, public art, and sculpture in the American art landscape.
Founded in 1986, Cavalier’s origins are uniquely tied to the foundry world. Ronald Cavalier Jr. was shaped by the work of his father, Ronald Cavalier Sr., a pioneering art foundryman who helped advance bronze casting in the U.S. and worked with institutions including the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, The MET, and MOMA. That foundation established a lasting emphasis on sculpture that continues to define the gallery today.
Patrick O'Brien, USS Spitfire on Patrol, 2020.
Founded by a combination of vision, passion, and perseverance, Ron opened the gallery in October 1986 in downtown Stamford, CT with minimal funds, borrowing from his only credit card to purchase pedestals and lighting. For the first five years, turning a profit was not a reality, it was a way of life. Without proper working capital, building a gallery is an immense challenge, but Ron’s early experience demonstrates that it can be done with focus, dedication, and resilience.
Over four decades, Cavalier has expanded into a multi-location gallery with spaces in New York, Greenwich, Nantucket, and Palm Beach, while maintaining a program that balances scholarship and connoisseurship, pairing historically significant retrospectives with exhibitions by leading contemporary artists. From founding the Stamford Sculpture Walk to presenting monumental public installations in New York City, the gallery has consistently brought museum-quality art into new contexts.
Hans Hofmann, Mosaic for Apartment House Sketch No. 4., 1956.
As part of its 40th-anniversary programming, the gallery is proud to present Modern Marine Masters, an exhibition of new works by the American Society of Marine Artists (ASMA). The show, on view May 19–July 10 at the gallery’s New York flagship, celebrates the nation’s 250th birthday and its maritime history, highlighting contemporary masters and coinciding with Sail4th 250, a massive flotilla of over 50 international tall ships entering New York Harbor from July 3–8, making it a moment where historical legacy, public engagement, and contemporary art intersect.
As the art market continues to consolidate around mega-galleries, Cavalier’s 40-year trajectory offers a compelling example of a gallery that has grown steadily while maintaining a distinct identity, one rooted in connoisseurship, public engagement, and a long-term commitment to artists.
Andy Warhol, Bianca Jagger on Horseback, Studio 54, 1977.
