Tara Donovan, Untitled (Styrofoam Cups), 2003, Styrofoam cups and hot glue, dimensions variable.
Tara Donovan
ICA - Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston
25 Harbor Shore Drive
October 10–January 4
Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati
44 E. Sixth Street
February 7–May 11
Des Moines Art Center
4700 Grand Avenue
June 19–September 13
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego | Downtown
1100 and 1001 Kettner Boulevard
October 10–February 28
Curated by Nicholas Baume and Jen Mergel
Tara Donovan makes I-can-do-that sculptures by taking a household item—a Styrofoam cup, straight pin, drinking straw, or toothpick—and positioning it among thousands of its ilk. You could do it, but you wouldn't. You wouldn't log hundreds of hours meticulously assembling, arranging, affixing, or otherwise conjoining countless identical consumer goods. The results, when seen from afar, offer gestalt experiences that, paradoxically, often conjure natural associations, with, for example, waves, clouds, and mountains. Donovan's first major museum show, accompanied by a comprehensive monograph documenting nearly all her projects to date, presents a dozen sculptures and five major installations from the past twelve years.
