Tara Donavan @ Cornell till June 14, 2009

New Drawings

April 10, 2009—May 2, 2009

PaceWildenstein is pleased to present its third solo exhibition of new work by Tara Donovan, who joined the gallery in 2005. Tara Donovan: New Drawings features two series of large-scale ink on paper drawings created in 2008-2009. The exhibition will be on view from April 10 through May 2, 2009 at 32 East 57th Street, New York City.The artist will attend an opening reception on Thursday, April 9th from 6-8 p.m.

Tara Donovan, who was recently awarded the 2008 MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Award, is also the subject of a traveling survey exhibition currently on view at the Lois & Richard Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art in Cincinnati through May 11, 2009. The exhibition, organized by the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, subsequently travels to the Des Moines Art Center, Iowa (June 19–September 14, 2009) and Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, California (October 10, 2009–January 16, 2010). The Monacelli Press published the artist’s first monograph in September 2008 to accompany the traveling exhibition.

Tara Donovan has stated that in her work the material itself dictates the final form of the objects or installations even though certain decisions are made about the way a particular material should be accumulated. But even then, she says, these decisions are based on experimentation with the physical properties of the material being used. She activates the inherent potential of a singular material by assigning predetermined rules for construction that allow the work to grow through repetitive labor.

Tara Donovan: New Drawings includes twenty-nine unique black and white drawings created from tempered glass, plate glass, and thread, and each measuring approximately 51 x 42". Donovan has employed both types of glass in previous work, most notably in her Untitled (Glass) cube sculptures which require hundreds of sheets of tempered glass.This variety, as she discovered during experimentation, is prone to shattering into thousands of crystalline pieces whereas the plate glass she used to create Untitled (Broken Glass), 2006, is more susceptible to clean-line fractures.

Donovan uses axiomatic systems to determine the genesis of a work, outlining conditions or rules to provide a “constant” so that the material—in this case two variations of the same medium—is allowed to dominate the form or composition. Using thread Tara Donovan exposes its innumerable compositional possibilities while preserving the integrity of the material itself. The thread cuts a delicate and dizzying line across the paper, in sharp contrast to the kinetic, almost violent energy captured in the glass drawings. Four works from this series will be on view.

The Lever House at 390 Park Avenue at 54th Street in New York City will feature Donovan’s Untitled (2009), an installation of loosely folded sheets of clear polyester film set within a wall that engages natural and artificial light and the surrounding architecture, from May to September 2009.

Tara Donovan’s work is also included in two group exhibitions: Unfolding Process: Conceptual and Material Practice on Paper, currently on view at The Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, through June 14, 2009, and Because I Say So: Sculpture from the Collection of Dennis and Debra Scholl, opening next month at The Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, Florida International University, Miami (April 17–August 15, 2009.)

Tara Donovan was born in 1969 in Queens, New York, and grew up further north in Nyack. She attended 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.Donovan received her M.F.A. in sculpture from Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond in 1999. Since then, she has been the subject of numerous gallery and museum exhibitions nationwide, including solo shows at the Saint Louis Art Museum, Missouri (2006), Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego (2004-05), 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 took part in the 2000 Biennial Exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.In the fall of 2007, The Metropolitan Museum of Art presented Tara Donovan at the Met, which featured a new large-scale wall installation created from silver Mylar tape and designed specifically for the museum’s Gioconda and Joseph King Gallery. Donovan’s installation, the fourth in the Met’s series of solo exhibitions dedicated to contemporary artists, was extended by popular demand and remained on view for nearly one year.In 2005,

Donovan was awarded the first annual Calder Prize by the Alexander Calder Foundation. That same year she participated in 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).

Her work is part of numerous museum collections throughout the United States, including the Dallas Museum of Art, The Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, St. Louis Art Museum, and Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.

Tara Donovan lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.

Additional information for Tara Donovan: New Drawings is available upon request by contacting Jennifer Benz Joy at jjoy@pacewildenstein.com or Lauren Staub at lstaub@pacewildenstein.com or call 212.421.3292.

Economic News - Cornell Public Press Releases 2009

Cornell University is a 'stable generator of economic activity' in a tough economy, report shows
ITHACA, N.Y. – The overall stability of Cornell University’s annual $3 billion in economic activity throughout New York state is highlighted in an economic impact report newly released by the university.

The report is an update of a previous economic impact study, released in early 2007, that showed in fiscal year 2005 Cornell generated $3.070 billion throughout the state, including $561 million in research spending at its Ithaca campus and Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City.

In fiscal 2007, according to the current economic impact update, Cornell generated $3.317 billion statewide, an increase of 8 percent over two years. Cornell again led universities in the state in research expenditures, totaling $659 million.

While the updated report does not reflect the severe economic downturn that began in late 2008 or the actions the university has taken to reduce expenditures in the current fiscal year, Cornell's budget is highly diversified and the university projects it will sustain revenues at or near their historical levels for the foreseeable future.

"As one of the state's leading entrepreneurial universities with a $2.8 billion budget, Cornell is a critical resource in this period of economic upheaval to help the state to financial recovery," Cornell President David J. Skorton said. "Even while we're making fiscal adjustments to deal with the current economic situation, Cornell is the economic engine that supports our community as we continue to be a leading economic engine for the state. The actions we are taking now will sustain the university's financial strength over the long term."

Cornell has instituted hiring and construction pauses through June 2009 and is experiencing staff layoffs in some areas. Endowment spending will be reduced by 15 percent for the coming fiscal year. The university is cutting its base budget by $60 million for fiscal year 2010, with an additional $50 million budget correction planned for 2011.

At the same time, the upcoming Class of 2013 will have an additional 100 students and there will be increased charges for tuition, room and board. Trustees also allocated $35 million from the endowment for student financial aid.

“While we must take time to evaluate our current financial position, Cornell continues to operate as a community of more than 30,000 students, faculty and staff, undertaking cutting-edge research and providing vital services to the people of the state of New York. It is an outstanding area employer," said Stephen T. Golding, executive vice president for finance and administration. "While some of the multimillion-dollar construction projects that have generated intense economic activity on the Ithaca and New York City campuses have been put on hold, the need for them has not gone away and many of them will continue when financial conditions improve."

For the economic impact study, faculty and researchers in Cornell's Department of City and Regional Planning used a social accounting matrix and IMPLAN software to measure the multiplier effects of Cornell's direct and indirect spending.

Highlights from the March 2009 Cornell economic impact report are:

-- Of the $3.317 billion in economic activity Cornell generated throughout the state in fiscal 2007, $1.654 billion was in Central New York, $1.319 billion was in New York City and $344 million was in other areas of the state.

-- Cornell is the primary economic engine in its home, Tompkins County, adding more than 16,000 jobs and $1.1 billion in wages to the local economy through direct and indirect spending.

-- Cornell directly and indirectly generated $61.2 million in tax revenues for New York state and $32.2 million for local government in Tompkins County. Weill Cornell Medical College generated $44.2 million in tax payments to the state and $10.9 million to New York City government.

-- Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) is critical to the fulfillment of Cornell's land-grant mission, contributing more than $92 million in programs throughout the state in fiscal 2007. Its total economic impact on the state that year was $158 million. CCE volunteers gave more than 1.14 million hours of service to important community efforts statewide.

-- Cornell is also a national leader in sustainability. The report cites its research in green technology and CCE programs for local foods and sustainable agriculture that has an impact throughout the state.

-- During fiscal 2007, 10 existing New York state businesses licensed 22 Cornell technologies, allowing them to stay competitive and grow.

-- More than 170,000 visitors to the Ithaca campus spent approximately $47 million locally and directly supported 778 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs in the county.

-- The Ithaca campus purchased $533 million in goods and services in fiscal 2007. A quarter of that, or $128 million, was spent in Tompkins County, and an additional $55 million was spent in surrounding counties in Central New York. Weill Cornell made $202 million in purchases in New York City.

-- In fiscal 2007, Cornell spent a total of $291 million with primary construction contractors: $179 million on projects for the Ithaca campus and $112 million on New York City projects. The construction projects generated 726 FTE jobs in Tompkins County. Weill Cornell construction created 888 jobs in New York City and an additional 77 FTE jobs elsewhere in the state.
"Cornell's updated fiscal 2007 economic impact study reaffirms the many ways Cornell's faculty, staff and students contribute to the quality of life for the citizens of New York state," said Joanne DeStefano, Cornell vice president for finance and CFO. "The study is intended to fulfill President Skorton's prior commitment to regularly report back to the citizens of New York state on how the university is using the resources it is provided to advance the public good."

National Modeling Registy Created

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Art Shows

Classical Sculptures Slide Show.

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Onward to the moon:

Jeff Taylor, University of Hawaii astronomy professor and science communicator, will give a free, family-friendly, public lecture on "Lunar Settlements, Lunar Science," Sunday, Oct. 12, at Cornell University's Bailey Hall at 7:30 p.m. Bill Nye (Cornell Engineering '77) The Science Guy  will host the evening.

Taylor's lecture is part of the 40th annual meeting of the American Astronomical Society's Division for Planetary Sciences conference in Ithaca, Oct. 10-15.

Why do scientists and explorers want to return to the Moon and settle it? Taylor says that lunar settlements will pave the way for a broad human presence on other planetary bodies. In many ways, the Moon is the eighth continent, he explains.

Taylor is the winner of the 2008 Carl Sagan Medal for Excellence in Public Communication in Planetary Science. He has communicated science through children's books, a novel and a series of educational videos. In 1996, he collaborated on a Web site called Planetary Science Research Discoveries - PSRD (http://www.psrd.hawaii.edu/) - and in 12 years, he has written 73 articles for PSRD about discoveries on the Moon, planets, planetary satellites, asteroids, comets and astrobiology. The site now gets 80,000 hits a month and its subscriber list includes people from 44 countries.

Contact: Blaine FriedlanderPhone: (607) 254-8093Cell: (607) 351-2610 bpf2@cornell.edu

National Security Higher Education Advisory Board Concludes February Meeting

National Security Higher Education Advisory Board Concludes February Meeting

The National Security Higher Education Advisory Board (NSHEAB), comprised of 20 university presidents and chancellors, met on February 5, 2008 at FBI Headquarters. The NSHEAB, which was created in 2005 by FBI Director Robert S. Mueller, III, meets regularly to discuss national security matters that intersect with higher education. Chaired by Graham Spanier, president of The Pennsylvania State University, the NSHEAB provides a forum for open, direct dialogue between the FBI, other government agencies, and higher education.

In a recently published editorial, Spanier cited a key concern for academia as "the denial of visas to scholars who wish to visit the U.S., especially when the denial is political rather than security-related." In order to address this concern, representatives from the Department of State briefed the members on the visa issuance process. Additionally, representatives from the Student and Exchange Visitor Program of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement provided an update on the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System and anticipated expansion of government services to universities and international students.

The FBI's Cyber Division also briefed the NSHEAB on cyber intrusion trends. The FBI expressed the need for academia participation in discussions of risk management and the fundamental issues of privacy in the cyber age. During the meeting, members also discussed relationships between the United States and other nations, focusing on those with growing relevance to U.S. higher education.

The FBI is extremely pleased with the active engagement of the Board's members to include Cornell University's President David J. Skorton, who commented at the meeting's conclusion, "I am grateful to the leadership of the FBI and other agencies for their willingness to engage in a meaningful and candid way with research university leaders. Concerted dialogue about issues that affect the higher education community is essential to achieving a balance in areas of critical national concern."

The Board is scheduled to meet again in June 2008.

Three Prominent Scholars to join the Faculty of Africana Studies and Research Center

The Africana Studies and Research Center (ASRC) at Cornell University conducted a very successful search for three senior faculty positions during the academic year 2006-2007. ASRC Director, Salah M. Hassan, is pleased to announce the appointment of three prominent senior scholars: Carole Boyce Davies Professor of African and African Diaspora Literature, Judith Byfield, Associate Professor of African History, and Grant Farred, Professor of African American Literature and Cultural Studies. These exciting appointments (with two more expected this academic year) are envisioned as part of a five-year plan and self-study by the faculty of ASRC, which include major revitalization of its undergraduate and graduate curricula as a step toward instituting a doctoral program in Africana studies at Cornell. The plan also include strengthening teaching of African languages, and building of study abroad and exchange programs in Ghana, Ethiopia and South Africa.

Dr. Carole Boyce Davies will join Cornell from the English and African-New World Studies at Florida International University (FIU). Recruited to build the African-New World Studies Program at FIU, she served as its director for three successful three-year appointments, which moved the program to international recognition. Boyce-Davies has degrees from the University of Maryland (BA, 1972); Howard University (M.A., 1974) and (University of Ibadan, Nigeria (Ph.D., 1978). She held distinguished professorships at a number of institutions, including the Herskovits Professor of African Studies and Professor of Comparative Literary Studies and African American Studies at Northwestern University. She is the author of Black Women, Writing and Identity: Migrations of the Subject (Routledge, 1994) and Left of Karl Marx. Claudia Jones, Black/Communist/Woman (Duke University Press, forthcoming, 2007). In addition to numerous scholarly articles, Boyce-Davies has also published the following critical anthologies: Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature (Africa World Press, 1986); Out of the Kumbla. Caribbean Women and Literature (Africa World Press, 1990); and a two-volume collection of critical and creative writing entitled Moving Beyond Boundaries (New York University Press, 1995): International Dimensions of Black Women's Writing (volume 1), and Black Women's Diasporas (volume 2). She is co-editor with Ali Mazrui and Isidore Okpewho of The African Diaspora: African Origins and New World Identities (Indiana University Press, 1999) and Decolonizing the Academy. African Diaspora Studies (Africa World Press, 2003). She is general editor of The Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora (Oxford: ABC-CLIO, forthcoming, 2007), a two-volume encyclopedia. Currently, Dr. Boyce Davies is writing a series of personal reflections called Caribbean Spaces. Between the Twilight Zone and the Underground Railroad, dealing with the issue of transnational Caribbean/American black identity, and is preparing an edition of the writings of Claudia Jones entitled Beyond Containment: Claudia Jones, Activism, Clarity and Vision. Dr. Boyce Davies will be joining Cornell in Fall 2008.

Dr. Carole Boyce Davies will join Cornell from the English and African-New World Studies at Florida International University (FIU). Recruited to build the African-New World Studies Program at FIU, she served as its director for three successful three-year appointments, which moved the program to international recognition. Boyce-Davies has degrees from the University of Maryland (BA, 1972); Howard University (M.A., 1974) and (University of Ibadan, Nigeria (Ph.D., 1978). She held distinguished professorships at a number of institutions, including the Herskovits Professor of African Studies and Professor of Comparative Literary Studies and African American Studies at Northwestern University. She is the author of Black Women, Writing and Identity: Migrations of the Subject (Routledge, 1994) and Left of Karl Marx. Claudia Jones, Black/Communist/Woman (Duke University Press, forthcoming, 2007). In addition to numerous scholarly articles, Boyce-Davies has also published the following critical anthologies: Ngambika: Studies of Women in African Literature (Africa World Press, 1986); Out of the Kumbla. Caribbean Women and Literature (Africa World Press, 1990); and a two-volume collection of critical and creative writing entitled Moving Beyond Boundaries (New York University Press, 1995): International Dimensions of Black Women's Writing (volume 1), and Black Women's Diasporas (volume 2). She is co-editor with Ali Mazrui and Isidore Okpewho of The African Diaspora: African Origins and New World Identities (Indiana University Press, 1999) and Decolonizing the Academy. African Diaspora Studies (Africa World Press, 2003). She is general editor of The Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora (Oxford: ABC-CLIO, forthcoming, 2007), a two-volume encyclopedia. Currently, Dr. Boyce Davies is writing a series of personal reflections called Caribbean Spaces. Between the Twilight Zone and the Underground Railroad, dealing with the issue of transnational Caribbean/American black identity, and is preparing an edition of the writings of Claudia Jones entitled Beyond Containment: Claudia Jones, Activism, Clarity and Vision. Dr. Boyce Davies will be joining Cornell in Fall 2008.

Grant Farred comes to Cornell from the Literature Program at Duke University, where he taught courses in African and African and African American literature and cultural studies. Farred earned his PhD. from Princeton University in 1997, and an MA from Columbia University in 1990 after a BA from University of the Western Cape, in Cape Town, South Africa in 1988. He also taught at Williams College and Michigan University. He has served as General Editor of the prestigious journal of critical cultural studies, South Atlantic Quarterly (SAQ) since 2002. He has published in a range of areas, including postcolonial theory, race, formation of intellectuals, sport's theory, and cultural studies and literary studies. His books include Midfielder's Moment: Coloured Literature and Culture in Contemporary South Africa (Westview Press, 1999), What's My Name? Black Vernacular Intellectuals (Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 2003), Phantom Calls: Race and the Globalization of the NBA (2006), and his most recent Long Distance Love: A Passion for Football, (Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press, forthcoming 2007). He is completing a fourth book manuscript entitled, Bodies in Motion, Bodies at Rest (forthcoming in from University of Minnesota Press 2008, dedicated to thinking the limitations of citizenship for raced subjects. Farred also edited a volume entitled Rethinking CLR James (London: Blackwell Publishers, 1996) a collection of essays on the Caribbean intellectual written by major scholars in the field of history, literary criticism and cultural studies. He also edited a special issue of SAQ (2004) entitled After the Thrill Is Gone: A Decade of Post-Apartheid South Africa, a serious appraisal of South African democracy, its failure and its successes, in the Post-Apartheid era. Farred joined the Africana Center this fall 2007, and is currently teaching two courses cross-listed with English: “Writing the African Diaspora,” and “African-American Cultural Theory.”

AFRICANA STUDIES & RESEARCH CENTER310 Triphammer Rd.Ithaca, NY 14850
Tel: (607) 255 4625Fax: (607) 255 0784email: mailto:spt1@cornell.edu