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Out of Joint: Joan Tanner

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Installation view of Out of Joint: Joan Tanner. Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Photo: Brian Forrest.

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Installation view of Out of Joint: Joan Tanner. Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Photo: Brian Forrest.

The End of Water 4 2020.tif Matt copy-1 (dragged) test

Joan Tanner, End of Water #2, 2020. Oil stick, oil pastel, chalk, Conté crayon on folded Strathmore paper. Courtesy of Joan Tanner, copyright 2022

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Joan Tanner, Yellow Mesh, 2020. Flex a Trac™, painted plastic mesh, painted plastic sheeting, wooden elements, metal rods, all-thread, rope, zip ties, hardware, painted sheet metal. Courtesy of Joan Tanner, copyright 2022

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The End of Water 4 2020.tif Matt copy-1 (dragged) test
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For over a decade, Joan Tanner has made room sized sculptures from plastic corrugated roofing sheets, re-bar, cast concrete, zip ties, drywall, c-clamps, safety netting, electrical conduit, joint compound, and plywood. In her hands, the most forgettable of factory-made construction materials become gravity defying confections with flamboyant curves, brilliant colors, and an informality that flirts with chaos. The exhibition, Out of Joint, focuses on these sculptural agglomerations and also her recent abstract drawings, that suggest islands, muddy stream beds, clouds, and branching networks of roots or trees. The sculptures and drawings are all recent work from 2013 to present day representing the fruit of more than 60 years of steady labor in the studio. A resident of Santa Barbara, Tanner regularly shows across the United States, but this is her first SBMA exhibition in more than 35 years.