Nebulous is an appropriatetitle for Tara Donovan?sinstallation, which rises fromthe floor like a fog conjuredimprobably by Scotch tapelooped in seemingly endlessspiral formations and gradedhills. First shown at New York’sAce Gallery in 2002, thework is on view in the 39-year-old’sfirst major museumsurvey, at the Institute ofContemporary Art in Bostonfrom October 10 throughJanuary 4, 2009. Sixteenadditional pieces madeof accumulations of commonplacematerials—a cubedhaystack constructed from ahalf million toothpicks, forexample, and a mountainof stacked straws creeping upthe wall in an ethereal haze—are also on display. ForDonovan, a surplus store canbe a portal to the sublime. Theshow heads to Cincinnati’sContemporary Arts Centerin February.

"Uncommon Art" originally appeared in the October 2008 issue of Art+Auction. For a complete list of articles from this issue available on ARTINFO, see Art+Auction's October 2008 Table of Contents.