A Tale of Two Cities, 1994

First created in 1981, A Tale of Two Cities/Historia de dos ciudades, was reinstalled for inSITE94 at the Children’s Museum/Museo de los Niños in San Diego. As a room-sized miniature reconstruction of two cities at war with each other, A Tale of Two Cities used over 5,000 toys collected by the artist from the United States, Japan, and Europe. Set in an environment of plants, sand, and rocks, the two cities, one much larger and more powerful than the other, faced off in conflict. Previously installed in 1982, 1985, 1988, and 1994, Burden modifies and adds to the piece for each reinstallation.

Curator: Lynda Forsha
Organizers: Children’s Museum/Museo de los Niños and Installation Gallery
Venue: Children’s Museum/Museo de los Niños, San Diego