Tara Booth

Tara Booth is a multidimensional artist that is rooted in ceramics. Her work is a manifestation of digestion through the queer, female-born body, both physically and mentally. Booth is originally from Michigan and has lived in many areas of the country. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at galleries such as A.I.R Gallery, Brooklyn, NY, Kunstraum Tapir, Berlin, Germany, Kaleid Gallery, San Jose, CA, MenLo Gallery, Jingdezhen, China, and The Center for Performance Research, Brooklyn, NY. Booth lives in Kansas City, Missouri and is an Assistant Professor of Art at a small, women’s college in Southern Missouri.

“Since the first time I watched my father gut a wild turkey at a young age, I have been deeply fascinated, confused, and repulsed by the anatomy of a body. Through my work and practice, I have been questioning what qualifies something as a “body.” Having a body is the most basic commonality we, as humanity, have. The current context of a pandemic has elucidated a strong dichotomy between bodies being the most valuable and disposable asset in this world. The constant pull between fear and pleasure that bodies experience, both from internal and external sources, has allowed me to explore how my physical body is digested by others and how much power societal labels hold, if any at all. What will happen to the future of physical bodies and physical art? As our world becomes more digitized, tactile art-making is more important than ever. By making work that requires intense physical touch, I am trying to find meaning in the untouched six feet of space between your body and mine.“