contact: info at micahdonovan dot com

Selected Exhibitions and Commissions

  • Other Tigers, Gallery Launch Group Exhibition, The Lost and Found, Toronto, April 15 - May 7, 2023
  • Ô Blédi ! Ô Toulouse ! Exhibition retracing the cultural exchanges of North Africans in Toulouse since the 20th century. Exposition qui retrace le récit de l’histoire de la présence des Maghrébins à Toulouse depuis le XX e siècle.  Photography, portraiture. Médiathèque José Cabanis, Toulouse, France 10 septembre 2019 au 12 janvier 2020.
  • Lost and Farmed. Sculpture project collaboration with the AGO Youth Council growing food in abandoned articles from the Art Gallery of Ontario's Lost and Found. Set up throughout the Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, ON, December 2018- January 2019.
  • Grow Op. Gladstone Hotel’s annual exhibition on landscape, urbanism, contemporary art, Toronto, ON, 2016, 2017.
  • Commissioned water play features and parts play kits for school yards and play spaces across Toronto, Ottawa, Waterloo region school boards. Developed for Evergreen Brick Works 2012 - Present.
  • YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT, YOU ARE. Owens Art Gallery, Mount Allison University, Sackville, New Brunswick, September 19, 2014.
  • Subtle Technologies: Sustainability. GrowTubes installation. Experimental indoor vertical micro-farm:  Project growing food in a movie theatre, Innis Town Hall, University of Toronto, June 2010, installed permanently Evergreen Brick Works Reception and public corridors 2011, 2012.
  • Nuit Blanche, Toronto. 2 x 4 Ferris wheel, Drop Out, curated by Christof Migone, Blackwood Gallery, Hart House, Toronto, ON, October, 2009.
  • Cosmic Bird Feeder Sculpture. Large scale outdoor ceramic sculpture, stoneware, cement, and steel. Commissioned collaboration with Daniela Pulido, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, ON, 2009.
  • Hot Pot Formula. Residency and exhibition at WLTWSAETLV Gallery, Montreal, QC, February 18, 2009.
  • Eat the Food! Group show, Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto, ON, September 7 – October 28, 2007
  • The Drawing Show, group show, Este Gallery, Toronto, ON, March 1 - 31, 2003.
  • Jewellery Group Show, Faculty and Students of N.S.C.A.D. Jewellery Department: Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax, May 7 - 14, 1998.
  • Forms and Texts, Works from Faculty and Students of N.S.C.A.D. Jewellery Department: Lynda Greenberg Gallery, Ottawa, April 7 - 28, 1996.
  • Print-o-rama, Annual Printmaking Group Show, Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax, NS, April 1 - 6, 1996.
  • Batteries Below Bathwater, Group show curated by Christof Migone, Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax, NS, November 14 - 18, 1995.

 

Grants, Awards

  • Ontario Arts Council Artist in the Community/Workplace grant in partnership with Greenwood College School, YMCA Toronto, and Y Academy. Lead artist in the Experimental Sculpture Project, Toronto, ON, 2012 – 2014.
  • Ontario Arts Council Integrated Arts Grant. Research project in conjunction with Evergreen. Lead Artist Researcher, grant writer, Material and Immaterial Ecology. Organized round tables and community initiatives framing ecologically considered approaches to art production with professionally/culturally diverse group of artists, historians, and scientists. Toronto, ON, March 2010 to June 2010.
  • North American Travel Journalists Association Gold Award: “Will Fish for Food,” enRoute/onAir February 2013, Electronic, Video, Broadcast Category 153: Travel Broadcast (Television, Radio, Podcast and Web Series).
  • Taste Awards Honoree "Breakout Foodies" for 2010. Food Jammers Season 3.
  • Gold Award at the 41st annual WorldFest Film Festival held in Houston, Texas. Food Jammers Season 2. 2008.
  • Toronto Arts Council Grant in partnership with Spiral Garden/ Bloorview. Ceramics light boxes with Daniela Pulido. Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, ON, Fall, 2005.

 

Selected Publications

Donovan, Micah. “Tokyo for Kids,” CAA Magazine. Print. Summer 2019.

Donovan, Micah. “On the Mustard Trail,” enRoute Magazine. Print. July 2016.

Donovan, Micah. “Will Fish for Food,” enRoute Magazine. Online. May 3 2012.

Donovan, Micah. “Falling for an Idea,” No More Potlucks. Online, Print on demand.  2012.

Radical Education Research Collective (RERC), For the blackbird, Le Merle. Print. Autumn 2012

Donovan, Micah. “Bancs Publics,” enRoute Magazine. Online. November 2011.

Adilman, Nobu and Donovan, Micah. “Vise Cakes: Making a Grain Puffer on the Cheap,” Popular Science. February 2011.

Donovan, Micah. “The Cellars of Paris: Exploring the Dark Side of the City of Lights,” enRoute Magazine. Online. 28 October 2010.

Donovan, Micah. “Double Zero Pizza Scene in San Fran,” enRoute Magazine. Online. May 2010.

 

Selected Press

Sacks, Katherine. “Food Jammers Take on Gonzo Cooking,” Popular Mechanics. Online. 22 June 2010.

“Newcomer to Food Television Tries for a Little Grit.” New York Times, Dining and Wine. 20 April 2010.

“Food Network Spinoff Announces Its Lineup.” New York Times, Dining and Wine. 20 April 2010.

“How to stay up all night.” Toronto Star. 2 October 2009.

Simpson, Peter “Food from scratch -- reinvented.” Ottawa Citizen. 12 September 2009.

 

Selected Presentations, Appearances 

“Inventing Culture.” You Are What You Eat, You Are, a symposium on food, art, and community. Open Sky Co-operative, Sackville, New Brunswick, September 18, 2014. Artist Presentation.

“Horizontal Engagements: Roots of participatory culture.” Staging Sustainability, York University, Toronto, April 22, 2011. Presentation.

“Slowtech, DIY Sustainability.”  Subtle Technologies Festival, Innis Town Hall, University of Toronto, June 6, 2010. Presentation.

“Size of an Idea,” Presentation, Arts for Social and Environmental Justice, Royal Conservatory of Music, Telus Centre, Toronto, May15, 2010.

Judge, 92nd, 89th Annual Hart House Camera Club Exhibition, University of Toronto, March, 2014, 2011.

Fundraiser for Sick Kids Hospital, with Pilot PMR, Toronto, 2010.

Guests, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority Our Greener Side festival. Bruce Mills Conservation Area, May 8, 2010.

Guest chefs, Children’s Emergency Fund Fundraiser, Toronto, Distillery District, August,

2008.

Presentation: the Center for Creative Communications, Broadcasting and Film, Centennial College, Toronto, ON, March 22, 2010.

Artists talk, Micah Donovan and Christopher Martin, VAV Gallery, Concordia University. Montreal, QC, February 18, 2009.

Visiting artist presentation at Emerge Guest Lecture Series, Nobu Adilman, Micah Donovan, Christopher Martin, The School of Technology & Design and the Department of Architectural Technology at CUNY. Brooklyn, NY, November 19, 2008.

“Participation as Narrative.” Visiting artist presentation, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, NS, October, 2007.

“The Spirit of the Journey,” Jan MacKie & Micah Donovan. Holistic Learning: Breaking New Ground 2005, International Conference, OISE, Toronto, ON, October 29, 2005.

“Growing Across Cultures.” with Jan MacKie, Shannon Crossman, American Community Garden Association Conference: Gardens of Diversity, Toronto, ON, 2004.

“Earthwork, Heartwork, Artwork, Healing.” 2004 Symposium On Physical and Health Disabilities (ODPHD), Toronto, Ontario, May, 2004.

 

Education

Nova Scotia College of Art and Design: BFA Program, Halifax, NS, Canada, fall 1994 – spring 1998, Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree.

Kansas City Art Institute: Foundations Program, Kansas City, MO, United States, fall, 1991 – Spring, 1992.

International Baccalaureate Program, Program for the Academically Talented, St. Petersburg High School, St. Petersburg, FL 1986 – 1990.

 

Employment

Art in Education

Instructor, University of Toronto Hart House. Teaching black and white film photography, composition, introductory and advanced black and white darkroom techniques, Toronto, ON, September, 2011 – Present.

Education Designer. Designing and fabricating creative pedagogical and environmental installations exploring food production, rain water harvest, play, conservation and irrigation, Evergreen Brick Works, TDSB, TDCSB, YMCA, Toronto ON, December, 2010 – Present. www.slowtech.ca

Lead Artist Researcher. Grant writer, Material and Immaterial Ecology. Integrated Arts Grant. Ontario Arts Council funded research project in conjunction with Evergreen. Organized round tables and community initiatives framing ecologically considered approaches to art production with professionally/culturally diverse group of artists, historians, and scientists. Toronto, ON, March, 2010 to June, 2010.

Arts Program Coordinator, Bloorview (later Holland Bloorview Kids Rehab).  Site Coordinator of integrated art – garden – play program for children and youth with and without disabilities. Designing and supporting art spaces, programs, and activities for children and youth 5 to 21. Responsible for program development, implementation of activities, maintenance of work areas for Ceramics, wood working, painting, crafts and gardening materials. Clients included visiting schools, community and special needs children from the Centre. Toronto, ON, 2002 – 2006.

Art Project and Installations Management

Curatorial Installations Manager, Gardiner Museum.  Responsible for the care and safety of the collection, coordination and execution of the production and installation plans, and overseeing maintenance of the permanent collection galleries.  Responsible for installation production budgets, resources, and crew. Toronto, ON, December 2012 – Present.

Commercial and Private Art installations, Independent art installation and fabrication services, problem solver: from 35 foot wide Edward Burtynsky mural fabrication, Evergreen Brick Works, to welding field repairs for MOMA Tim Burton exhibition at TIFF. Clients include Canada Council Art Bank, Division Gallery, TIFF, York University Art Gallery, AGO Picasso exhibition and private clients, Toronto, ON, 2002 – Present.

Lead Artist and Educator, Experimental Sculpture Project. Toronto YMCA, Y Academy and Greenwood College School. Ceramic and steel living sculpture addressing food as cultivation, production of preserves and the preservation of culture.  Ontario Arts Council Artist in the Workplace project, Toronto, ON, June 2012 – 2014. 

Guest Curator, Robert McLaughlin Gallery. Drift, featuring works of Alexander Graham Bell from the collection of the Government of Canada, video works by Callum Cooper, Klara Hobza, and Kristan Horton, sculpture by Marc Ganzglass, and Christof Migone, Oshawa, ON, June 22 – September 8, 2013.

 

Volunteer

Judge, Oceanwise Seafood Chowder Chowdown: sustainable fisheries and great chefs of Toronto, fundraiser for Oceanwise. Fairmount Royal York, Nov 2, 2011.

Judge, Oceanwise Seafood Chowder Chowdown: sustainable fisheries and great chefs of Toronto, fundraiser for Oceanwise.  Fairmount Royal York, Nov 17, 2010.

Fundraiser for Sick Kids Hospital, with Pilot PMR, Toronto, 2010.

Guest performers, cider press and apple fritters, the Stop Good Food for All Festival,Toronto, September 18, 2010

Guest performers, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority Our Greener Side festival. Bruce Mills Conservation Area, May 8 2010.

Guest chefs, Children’s Emergency Fund Fundraiser, Toronto, Distillery District, August 2008.

 

Creative Production, Television and Media

Writer, Photographer, Videographer.  enRoute Magazine, Popular Science Magazine, CAA Magazine, 2010 – Present.

Creator, Co-Creative Producer and Co-Host, Food Jammers. 39 episodes plus 1 1hour special of creative, next-level and low-tech cooking.  Food Network Canada, Toronto, 2005 – 2009.

Co-Creative Producer and Co-Host, Invention Nation, 13 episodes touring United States of America in a vegetable oil powered bus exploring sustainable technologies and practices, Discovery Science, USA, 2007.

Designer, Centre for the Arts, developing educational resources and publications online and in print. Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, ON, October – March, 2002 – 2007.

Designer, Co-author, Co-illustrator, Spiral Garden Resource Book, Médecins Sans Frontières, Bloorview MacMillan Children’s Centre. Co-developed guide for arts programming as part of mental health, disaster/war relief program through Médecins Sans Frontières and Bloorview, Toronto, ON, October – March, 2002.

Editor, Designer, Free Coffee: Monthly Journal of the Student Union of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, May, 1997 – May, 1998.