In 2019 Marciano Art Foundation exhibited OBSIDIAN LADDER, the first large-scale solo exhibition in the United States by Bolivian American artist Donna Huanca. Huanca’s site-specific installation for MAF’s 13,000 sqft Theater Gallery was used to reveal a new topography of triggered senses, combining sound, scent, and live performance. The elements were experienced together against a constellation of carved steel sculptures and skin paintings.
Skin and the body—its presence and absence—lay at the core of Huanca’s works. The artist utilizes materials that have a direct relationship to nature, such as raw pigments, oils, turmeric, sand, and clay.
