Tara Donovan — Biography



1969 Born in New York, NY

 

 Known for utilizing common and manufactured materials as components for her installations and sculptures, Donovan has been recognized for her commitment to process. She earned acclaim for her ability to discover how the inherent physical characteristics of an object might allow it to be transformed into art. The artist goes on to explore the multiplication of these interactions, at times utilizing hundreds of thousands or millions of units, to generate powerful perceptual phenomenon and subtle atmospheric effects.

Tara Donovan (b. 1969) studied at the School of Visual Arts, New York, from 1987-88 before earning her B.F.A. from the Corcoran College of Art and Design, Washington, D.C. in 1991. She received her M.F.A. in sculpture from Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, in 1999. Since then, Donovan has been the subject of numerous gallery and museum shows nation wide, including the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego (2004), UCLA Hammer Museum (2004), Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland (2003-2004) and Hemicycle Gallery, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (1999-2000). Donovan also participated in the 2000 Biennial Exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.

Tara Donovan was the 2005 recipient of the Alexander Calder Foundation’s first annual Calder Prize. This year she was also granted an artist’s residency at the Atelier Calder in Saché, France.

Among her other awards and distinctions are the American Academy of Arts and Letters, Willard L. Metcalf Award (2004), National Academy Museum, Helen Foster Barnett Prize (2004), Women’s Caucus for Art, Presidential Award (2004), New York Foundation for the Arts grant recipient (2003), Pollock-Krasner Foundation grant recipient (2003), Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Biennial Competition (2001) and Joan Mitchell Foundation grant recipient (1999).

Tara Donovan lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.