Richard Tuttle and the Comfort of the Unknown

Richard Tuttle has enjoyed a quiet but devoted following in an intimate art world—until lately. With a major retrospective exhibition on tour from San Francisco to New York, Des Moines, Dallas, Chicago, and Los Angeles, Tuttle now seems to be everywhere. Tireless in the pursuit of his art, he is receiving the considerable attention that many believe is long overdue. Molly Donovan, a curator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., interviewed Tuttle early this year after he had just completed installing four new solo shows of his work on two continents. The current retrospective is enabling Tuttle to reexamine his career and his role. In the interview, he continually moved the discussion toward his thoughts on the place of art and the artist in U.S. society after 9/11. Tuttle recalled the events of that day and noted that art should be considered an element that contributes to the renewed health of an entire society. Creative work, he noted, is “a phenomenal resource and richness. It allows us t...