This wonderfully strange Standing Clown sculpture is by British artist Beth Carter, whose work often sits somewhere between mythology, carnival, fairy tale, and the slightly unsettling corners of the imagination. Made from white pigmented resin, the figure stands approximately 41" high x 24.5" wide x 6" deep and is from an edition of 15.
The clown is rendered almost entirely in white, with arms stretched wide, an exaggerated pointed hat, oversized shoes, a heavily textured ruff, and a small gift balanced in one hand. Gold-colored laces provide a subtle flash of decoration at the feet, while the tiny present is tied with a bright red ribbon. The roughly modeled surface is intentionally tactile, retaining marks and irregularities that give the sculpture the feeling of something shaped directly by hand rather than mechanically perfected.
Carter is a UK-based sculptor and Royal West of England Academician whose work frequently combines human figures with animals, masks, performers, and mythological characters. Clowns, jesters, minotaurs, hybrid creatures, and carnival figures appear repeatedly throughout her sculpture and drawings. Her work has been exhibited internationally and is held in museum and private collections. (Beth Carter)
The clown has a particularly long history in visual art. Beyond comedy, clowns and jesters have often represented outsiders, performers, fools, and figures who can move between humor and melancholy. Artists have returned to them precisely because that identity is so unstable: funny one moment, lonely or slightly unnerving the next.
Carter plays with that ambiguity here. The open arms feel welcoming, but the blank white surface, closed eyes, pointed head, and elongated proportions give the figure a quieter, stranger presence. The artist’s own records list Standing Clowns in black, white, and red pigmented resin, each produced in an edition of 15. (Beth Carter)
This example includes its original signed certificate of authenticity, identifying it as edition 3/15.
This wonderfully strange Standing Clown sculpture is by British artist Beth Carter, whose work often sits somewhere between mythology, carnival, fairy tale, and the slightly unsettling corners of the imagination. Made from white pigmented resin, the figure stands approximately 41" high x 24.5" wide x 6" deep and is from an edition of 15.
The clown is rendered almost entirely in white, with arms stretched wide, an exaggerated pointed hat, oversized shoes, a heavily textured ruff, and a small gift balanced in one hand. Gold-colored laces provide a subtle flash of decoration at the feet, while the tiny present is tied with a bright red ribbon. The roughly modeled surface is intentionally tactile, retaining marks and irregularities that give the sculpture the feeling of something shaped directly by hand rather than mechanically perfected.
Carter is a UK-based sculptor and Royal West of England Academician whose work frequently combines human figures with animals, masks, performers, and mythological characters. Clowns, jesters, minotaurs, hybrid creatures, and carnival figures appear repeatedly throughout her sculpture and drawings. Her work has been exhibited internationally and is held in museum and private collections. (Beth Carter)
The clown has a particularly long history in visual art. Beyond comedy, clowns and jesters have often represented outsiders, performers, fools, and figures who can move between humor and melancholy. Artists have returned to them precisely because that identity is so unstable: funny one moment, lonely or slightly unnerving the next.
Carter plays with that ambiguity here. The open arms feel welcoming, but the blank white surface, closed eyes, pointed head, and elongated proportions give the figure a quieter, stranger presence. The artist’s own records list Standing Clowns in black, white, and red pigmented resin, each produced in an edition of 15. (Beth Carter)
This example includes its original signed certificate of authenticity, identifying it as edition 3/15.
