About
Bio
Tania O’Donnell is a Philadelphia area artist. Tania approaches her work conceptually, using materials ranging from traditional drawing and painting media to installation and video. As the third generation inhabiting her family home, much of her work begins in the articles forgotten in this space. The documentation of these small things reveal clues about larger complex systems, real or imagined.
Tania holds a Masters of Fine Arts from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and a Masters of Arts in Teaching from the University of the Arts. She is a Corzo Center for the Creative Economy Incubator Grant recipient and Wells Fargo Fellow for her work with the Red Barn Arts Center in rural Wellsboro, PA. Tania is currently the Faculty and Chair of pk-12 Fine Arts Curriculum for the Shipley School in Bryn Mawr, PA.
Artist Statement
The odd philosophy of ‘pataphysics blends an ardent insistence on infinite possibility with the uncertain reality that nothing necessarily is as it seems. Simultaneously in earnest and in jest, this view creates a structure to allow ideas that linger in the ante rooms of acknowledgement to weave their way into imagery and assert new possibilities. My work takes this approach. The facets of my life, family history, political concerns, childhood reading preferences bleed together, always with a sense that outcomes are subject to boundless permutations.
Concepts guide materials my studio practice. The concept selects the material so my work takes many forms. Collage, drawing, painting, sculpture, video, and installation all have a place in my process. I work slowly and on several projects at once, often circling back around to older works after discovering new possibilities in materials.
My projects influence and grow out of each other. Imagery of rabbits, hares, machines, and basic geometry pass back and forth between works. I use these images to explore questions about myself and my family infused with confusion over our growing culture of fact=non-fact. It is all thought process and documentation.
Curriculum Vitae
Born
1973, Marin, CA
Lives
Havertown, PA
Education
2017
M.F.A., Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2003
M.A.T. for the Visual Arts, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
1995
B.S. Psychology, Mary Washington College (now University of Mary Washington), Fredericksburg, VA
Solo Exhibitions
2014
Rabbits and Rituals, Speer Gallery at The Shipley School, Bryn Mawr, PA
Tania O’Donnell: New Works, Gmeiner Arts and Cultural Center, Wellsboro, PA
Group Exhibitions
2017
Presence, MFA Thesis Show, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Good Fellows, Gallery 128, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2016
Life, Liberty, Happiness? Gallery 128, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Studio, Gmeiner Arts and Cultural Center, Wellsboro, PA
2015
Proximity, New Leaf Club, Rosemont, PA
2013
POST, Open Studio Tours, Philadelphia
2012
Making It, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
ArtUnleashed, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2011
PHX ART, Phoenixville, PA
2010
6-III*, NCECA satellite exhibit, The Haverford School, Haverford, PA
The Cup Show, NCECA 2010, The Philadelphia Convention Center, Philadelphia, PA
10,000 People Project, Arthouse Cooperative, Atlanta, GA
2009
Sketchbook Project: Volume 3, Arthouse Cooperative, Atlanta, GA
Unframed, Uncorked, Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA
2008
Upper Darby Arts Festival Benefit, Upper Darby High School, Drexel Hill, PA
2007
Upper Darby Arts Festival Benefit, Upper Darby High School, Drexel Hill, PA
2006
Upper Darby High School Faculty Exhibit, Tyme Gallery, Havertown, PA
Upper Darby Arts Festival Benefit, Upper Darby High School, Drexel Hill, PA
2005
Upper Darby Arts Festival Benefit, Upper Darby High School, Drexel Hill, PA
2003
Fall Juried Art Education Graduate Exhibit, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2002
Spring Juried Art Education Graduate Exhibit, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Fall Juried Art Education Graduate Exhibit, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Simile, Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
The Seven Deadly Sins, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Merit Scholarships, Grants, Awards
2017 Faculty Award, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
2016 - 2017 Former Trustee Scholarship, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
2015 - 2017 Merit Award, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
2015 - 2017 Graduate Grant Award, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
2012 Corzo Center for the Creative Economy Incubator Grant recipient and Wells Fargo Fellow
2003 Sylvia G. Wexler Award for Excellence in Graduate Study
2002 - 2003 Graduate Assistantship, Teaching Assistant, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
2001 - 2002 Graduate Assistantship, Institute for Arts in Education, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Press
The Psychology of a Self-Portrait: Artist Tania O’Donnell opens new exhibit at Gmeiner Art Center, Sara Vogt, Wellsboro Home Page, 2014
The World Is But a Canvas of Imagination: Local barn restored and transformed into Red Barn Arts Center, Sara Vogt, Wellsboro Home Page, 2013
Real Art in the Red Barn, Sarah Bull, Mountain Home Magazine, 2012
Projects / Panels
2017
FATE: Beyond the Core: SmartPhone Technology in Foundation Design Curriculum, co-presenter with Sarah Steinwachs and Josh Weiss
2015
Founding and Contributing Member, ProximityArts.org
2013
Grant Review Panel, Corzo Center for the Creative Economy
2012
Co-Founder and Director of Programming, Red Barn Arts Center, Wellsboro, PA
Curatorial Projects
2007
Seven, Centennial Hall, The Haverford School, Haverford, PA
Writing
2016
Ann Hamilton, ProximityArts.org, December 21, 2016
Montreal Art: Ragnar Kjartansson, ProximityArts.org, June 7, 2016
Philadelphia is Popping!, ProximityArts.org, March 12, 2016
FIRST/shift/THIRD, Milk Crate Gallery, Frenchtown, NJ, ProximityArts.org, January 11, 2016
2015
Showdown: Rabbits vs Hares, (aka, Happy Anniversary Mr. Beuys), ProximityArts.org, November 27, 2015
Teaching Positions
Chair, pk-12 Fine Arts Curriculum, The Shipley School, Bryn Mawr, PA, (2016 - present)
Chair, Interdisciplinary Department, The Shipley School, Bryn Mawr, PA (2016 - present)
Faculty, Fine Arts Department, The Shipley School, Bryn Mawr, PA (2014 - present)
Instructor, Red Barn Arts Center, Wellsboro, PA (2012 - 2015)
Instructor, Fine Arts Department, Lincoln University, Lincoln, PA (2007)
Faculty, Fine Arts Department, Upper Darby High School, Drexel Hill, PA (2004 - 2013)
Instructor, k-12 School Programs, The Barnes Foundation, Lower Merion, PA (2003 - 2004)
Instructor, Saturday Lab School at the University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA (2003)
Teaching Artist, Philadelphia Reads in partnership with Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA (2002, 2003)