Dorothy Tanner Bio

Dorothy Tanner

Dorothy Tanner was born in The Bronx, NY. She studied woodcarving with Chaim Gross and sculpture with Milton Hebald and Aaron B. Goodleman. She also attended Brooklyn Museum Art School where she met native New Yorker Mel Tanner. They married two years later.

The Tanners founded an artists co-op, Granite Gallery, on East 57th Street in New York. The Granite Art Association organized seminars, forums, and exhibitions. "The New Face in Art" Forum took place at the Loeb Center at New York University. Participants were Louise Nevelson, Red Grooms, and Norman Carton.

After traveling extensively in Europe, they established a studio in Miami. Their interest in acrylic and its unique light transmitting quality engaged both Dorothy and Mel in experimentation that led to the major element of the Lumonics art form...light.

The Lumonics Light and Sound Theatre opened to the public in Miami in 1969 with much critical acclaim. It was a new art form that combined painting, sculpture, fountains, live projection, electronics, and music. This project became and has remained their main focus and dedication. Lumonics installations also were well-received in San Diego, CA, Bangor, ME, and Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Since the passing of Mel Tanner, Dorothy collaborates with Marc Billard on music and video art.

Tanner Studio/Lumonics relocated to the Denver area in Oct. 2008.

Exhibitions
August, 2009: 18th Annual Loveland Sculpture Invitational, Loveland, CO
Edge Zones Art Center, Miami, FL
ZONES Art Fair, Edge Zones Art Center, Miami FL
Coral Springs Museum, 2005
Museum of New Arts, Fort Lauderdale
Patricia Judith Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
New York Univ., Loeb Center, New York, NY
Granite Gallery, East 57th Street, New York, NY
Key Gallery, East 57th Street, New York, NY
Everson Museum, Syracuse, NY

Special Projects
Lumonics Light and Sound Theatre, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Lumonics Performing Art Gallery, Bangor, ME
Lumonics Environment, San Diego, CA
Lumonics Light and Sound Theatre, Miami, FL

Education
Educational Alliance, New York, NY
Brooklyn Museum School of Art, Brooklyn, NY

Teaching
Syracuse University, Special Education Department
Syracuse Art Workshop, sculpture instructor

Additional Projects
WGBH-TV, Boston (sets for Frontline and Nova)
WBZ-TV, Boston (sets, including world map)

Grants
"Ecology through Art" video production, U.S. Govt.

Commissions
Sheraton Hotel, La Guardia Airport, New York
Hilton Hotels, Florida and Grand Bahamas
Fingers, Caracas, Venezuela (private club)
The Library, Lexington, KY (nightclub)
Bemelman's, Miami, FL (restaurant)
Golden Lion, Boston, MA (restaurant)
House of Mo-Ko, Miami, FL (executive offfices)
Scandia, Miami, FL (installation)
Hi-Fi Associates, Miami, FL (installation)
20th Century Fox, Los Angeles, CA

Collections
General Electric, New York, NY
Raytheon Corporation, New York, NY
Continental Can, New York, NY
Air Products and Chemicals, Inc., Pennsylvania
Datamore, Inc., New York, NY
Data Processing, Inc., Rochester, NY
Numerous Private Collections

Tanner Studio
800 E. 73 Ave. #11
Denver, CO 80229
PH 303.568.9406 ,