Tara Donovan

Look Closer

100

Accumulation becomes transformation

as sculptor Tara Donovan turns ordinary,

manufactured objects into astounding

works of art. Massive quantities of mun-

dane items—straight pins, buttons, plastic

cups, Scotch tape—are stacked, looped,

twisted and folded to determine “how the

material will behave.” In this way, Donovan

creates astonishing visual experiences

that attest to the poetic wonder of close

looking and bigger thinking about the

materials that surround us.

This exhibition, the fi rst museum

survey in Donovan’s career, demonstrates

the artist’s ingenuity with 17 extraordinary

works, including an installation created

especially for the ICA. Much of the artist’s

work draws comparisons to art of the

1960s, such as Minimalism, with its plain

geometric forms, and Conceptualism,

which shifted emphasis onto the creative

process. Like the artists of this earlier

generation, Donovan uses grids, cubes

and repetition, however her sculptures

build upon and extend their ideas, trans-

forming familiar materials into unique

works of art.

Donovan’s sculptures are deliberately

integrated with their architectural setting.

In some, materials pool directly on the

fl oor; in others, the gallery walls or ceiling

act as a frame for the work. Donovan

refers to this aspect of her art as “site-

responsive,” since its forms may adapt to

subtly different architectural spaces.

We invite you to use this guide as

you move through the exhibition and to

take a close look at Donovan’s sculptures

and the rooms they inhabit. It is this

careful inspection, co-curator Jen Mergel

points out, which “rewards our curiosity.”

“I develop a dialogue with each material

that dictates the forms” —Tara Donovan

Bluffs, 2006

Three versions; buttons and glue

Mugrabi Collection

Ovitz Family Collection, Los Angeles

Private collection

Hear more on the ICA’s free audio

commentary. Borrow an iPod from the

admissions desk, access on your cell phone

at 617-231-4055, or download to your MP3

player at www.icaboston.org/gofurther.

POSS FAMILY MEDIATHEQUE

A new video explores Tara Donovan’s

creative process and her focus on the interac-

tion between the visitor, the artwork, and the

gallery space. Available October 14.

Public Tours

The ICA offers public tours of Tara Donovan

on Target Free Thursday Nights at 6 pm and

each Saturday and Sunday at 1 pm. Tours are

free with museum admission and leave from

the lobby.

ICA interpretive programs are made possible

by the signifi cant support of the Carl and Ruth

Shapiro Family Foundation. Additional support

is provided by the Nathaniel

Saltonstall Arts Fund.

Untitled (Toothpicks), 1996

Wooden toothpicks

Private collection

(Reproduced below)

Untitled (Pins), 2004

Straight pins

Collection of the artist

Untitled (Glass), 2004

Tempered glass

Courtesy of PaceWildenstein, New York

From afar these cubes may resemble shimmering mesh, icy

crystals, or tangled splinters. A closer look at these sculptures

reveals the massive number of toothpicks, pins and glass sheets

the artist used to create them. Donovan’s repetition of the same

form using different materials highlights the uniqueness of each:

pins’ shiny thinness, toothpicks’ dry lattice, or the opaque, narrow

openings through once transparent glass.

While the cube has been explored by artists from the

1960s for its stable wholeness, here Donovan fractures the

solid form, relying only on the unseen forces of friction, gravity,

and inertia to contain loose parts as a coherent whole.

101, 102

Untitled (Plastic Cups), 2006/2008

Plastic cups

Courtesy of Arne and Milly Glimcher

Donovan stacks over three million 7-ounce cups at varying

heights within a sprawling rectangular perimeter. Although

presented in a grid—a system artists of the 1960s utilized for its

rational geometric order—Donovan’s cups defy containment. The

stacks of cups tilt and lean in irregular undulating patterns. The

artist’s simple gesture of stacking unleashes an unpredictable

energy of seemingly boundless expansion.

“I assemble units that I reproduce and collect in

various ways to discover how they will behave

visually in a population.”

103

Untitled (Paper Plates), 2005

Three versions; paper plates and hot glue

Beth Rudin DeWoody

Wanda Kownacki, Courtesy of Edward Boyer

Fine Art Advisory


Bluffs, 2006

Three versions; buttons and glue

Mugrabi Collection


Private collection

(Reproduced in Introduction)

Donovan’s works do not simply echo nature’s structures, but

also evoke its infi nite variation, unfolding motion, and continuous

evolution. She stacks buttons in a cumulative process akin to the

formation of cave-dwelling stalagmites, and clusters bunches of

paper plates in what resembles underwater coral sponges. The

artist highlights details in each material to animate these forms:

The teetering columns of tiny plastic discs catch light in every

button hole. Her layered spheres of paper discs trap shadows

that shift along their scalloped edges as we pass.

104, 105

Untitled (Mylar), 2008

Mylar and hot glue

Courtesy of Stephen Friedman Gallery

“My work might appear ‘organic’ or ‘alive’ specifi cally

because my process mimics, in the most elementary

sense, basic systems of growth found in nature.”

Mylar’s pliable shiny surface allows Donovan to funnel light’s

refl ection and absorption in the folds of these spore-like

mounds. The work sprawls across the gallery fl oor, as if an

otherworldly metallic garden through which we navigate.

Donovan’s work activates our shifting perception of light

and space. Its placement choreographs our movement to

trigger the fl uctuating contrasts of dark shadow and bright

glare within its hollows.

106

In Moiré, oversized rolls of adding machine paper capture the

movement of shadows in the thin slits between their coils.

In Untitled (Mylar Tape), tiny silvered hoops cling to the walls,

refl ections bouncing between each ring. Although both

works harness a simple looping gesture that reacts with light,

Donovan achieves wide-ranging effects with their distinct

texture, density, and composition.

Moiré, 2005

Adding machine paper


(Reproduced below)

Untitled (Mylar Tape), 2008

Polyester metallized fi lm tape


107, 108

Nebulous, 2002

Scotch tape

Collection of Andrea and Marc Glimcher

Nebulous appears like a mist growing from the gallery fl oor. The

work’s title hints at the uncertain perceptual experience created

with none other than “invisible” and “magic” Scotch tape. Donovan

looped innumerable yards into the irregular airy weave that hovers

at our feet. Using such familiar material, she suggests both fl eet-

ing emergence and fragile presence, and the potential to visually

transform the ordinary into the extraordinary.

109

Haze, 2005

Translucent plastic drinking straws

Collection of Tony Ganz

Following on 1960s artists’ “site-specifi c” installations that

relate directly to a fi xed location, Donovan explores a more

fl exible model she terms “site-responsive,” as her works expand

or contract to merge directly with the dimensions in each space

they are exhibited. Haze fi lls the given length of the gallery wall

with what resembles a rolling fogbank, but is in fact millions of

clear drinking straws. The entire volume is held in place by the

corners of the room, with the walls acting as a frame for the

work’s seemingly infi nite expanse.

“I see my work as perhaps having a more dynamic

relationship to the spaces where it is presented.”

110, 111

Donovan gathers Styrofoam cups in what resembles a swelling

mass materializing from the gallery ceiling. Each vessel

diffuses the light above into a soft glow of particles. Through

this material and its location, the installation evokes the buoyancy

of ethereal clouds or massive icebergs drifting overhead.

Untitled (Styrofoam Cups) exemplifi es how Donovan’s works

often embody paradox: it is dense yet light, brimming yet

hollow, literal yet poetic.

Untitled (Styrofoam Cups), 2004/2008

Styrofoam cups and glue


112

In an opening cut through the gallery wall, Dovovan unspools

clear plastic sheeting in countless folds that compress under

its own weight. Viewed top to bottom, the work evolves from

loose curls to more compact layers as the weight builds. Walk-

ing along its length, we can compare how the work variously

fi lters the warm yellow artifi cial light on one side and the

cool hues of daylight on the opposite side. This fl ow of folds

and light also echoes our own motion as the plastic refl ects

the kaleidoscopic shuffl e of our passing shadows. With no

inherent limit to their infi nite variation and expansive depth,

Donovan’s works continue to push the boundaries of what a

sculptural “object” might be.

Untitled, 2008

Polyester fi lm


“Because the surfaces of my work do often shift

and follow the perspective of the viewer, there is a

perceptual movement that coincides with a person’s

physical movement within the gallery space.”

113

Biography

Tara Donovan was born 1969 in New York City. She studied at

the School of Visual Arts, New York; Corcoran College of Art and

Design, Washington, D.C.; and Virginia Commonwealth University,

Richmond. Her most recent solo exhibitions have been mounted

by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland, OH (2003), Rice

University Art Gallery, Houston, TX (2003), the UCLA Hammer

Museum, Los Angeles, CA (2004), Museum of Contemporary

Art, San Diego, CA (2004), the Saint Louis Art Museum, Saint

Louis, MO (2006), and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New

York, NY (2007). Donovan is recipient of numerous awards and

fellowships, including the inaugural 2005 Calder Foundation

Prize and a 2008 MacArthur Fellowship “genius” grant, which

acknowledges outstanding achievement “on the very edge of

discovery” and “new synthesis.”

Portrait of Tara Donovan at work, 2005. Photograph by Ellen Labenski

Courtesy PaceWildenstein, New York

Talks

TARA DONOVAN IN CONVERSATION WITH

LAWRENCE WESCHLER

Tuesday, October 14, 7:30 pm

As Tara Donovan opens her fi rst major museum survey, the

Brooklyn-based sculptor discusses her work with Lawrence

Weschler, a writer known for making surprising connections

between seemingly disparate ideas and images.

Tickets: $12 general admission; $8 members, students,

and seniors

LUNCHTIME GALLERY TALKS New!Take a break to nourish your body and your mind. ICA curators

share their perspectives on working with today’s artists in a pro-

gram tailor-made for your lunch hour. Our speakers will provide

food for thought; the Water Café will take care of the rest.

Jen Mergel, Associate Curator

Thursday, October 16, 12 pm

Jen Mergel/Nicholas Baume, Chief Curator

Thursday, December 11, 12 pm

FREE with museum admission. Tickets are available fi rst-come,

fi rst-served one hour before the program. Ticket holders receive

a 10% discount at the Water Café. May not be combined with

any other offer.

Courses

LOOK HERE: INTRODUCTION TO CONTEMPORARY

SCULPTURE

Tuesdays, October 21 and 28, November 4, 11, and 18

11 am – 12:30 pm

Satisfy some of your curiosity about contemporary sculpture

through this fi ve-week program. Led by Randi Hopkins, this pro-

gram will offer diverse perspectives on what it means to make

and appreciate sculpture today.

Fee: $120; $100 members, students and seniors. Participants

receive a 10% discount on items in the Water Café and

ICA Store. May not be combined with any other offer.

Tara Donovan education programs are made possible by a gift from

Bruce and Robert Beal in honor of Barbara Krakow.

Families

PLAY DATE: BEYOND THE ARTIST’S HAND

Saturday, October 25, 10 am – 4 pm

Looking for an awe-inspiring adventure? Discover how artist Tara

Donovan uses everyday materials to create sculptures that imi-

tate natural forms even as they seem to defy the laws of nature.

Catch performances in the galleries by Underground Railway

Theater. For details log onto www.icaboston.org.

All activities are designed for children ages 5 – 12 and

adults to do together, and no prior registration is necessary.

Space is limited, and free tickets may be required for selected

theater events; these will be available fi rst-come, fi rst-served in

the lobby on the day of the event only.

This Play Date is sponsored by Nancy W. Adams.

Activities in the Bank of America Art Lab are made possible by

Generous support of ICA Youth Education is provided by JP Morgan Chase

Foundation, the Cabot Family Charitable Trust, and the Fuller Foundation.

In the ICA Store

Tara Donovan, a comprehensive monograph,

includes approximately 70 reproductions of

all of the artist’s works to date. The hard-

cover volume features an essay by exhibition

curators Nicholas Baume and Jen Mergel,

and an extended interview with the artist by

Lawrence Weschler.

The exhibition and publication were

generously supported by Chuck and

Kate Brizius and Barbara Lee.

Media Sponsor

THE INSTITUTE OF

CONTEMPORARY ART/BOSTON

100 Northern Avenue · Boston MA 02210

www.icaboston.org

Documents

Tara Donovan