For the British artist Tacita Dean, the phrase “blind folly” denotes an emotion she is well acquainted with—the incredible role chance and fate play in the success of a creative act. She herself has been successful. After graduating from London’s Slade School of Fine Art, in 1992, she was included in “General Release: Young British Artists” at the 46th Venice Biennale, along with Tracey Emin, Douglas Gordon, and Damien Hirst. Dean is best known for her work in 16 mm., contemplative shorts that use drawing, photography, and sound to look at the work of other artists, such as Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty or J. G. Ballard’s writing. This exhibition at the Menil Collection, Dean’s first in the U.S., comes after a residency in the Menil’s Cy Twombly Gallery and includes new pieces as well as blackboard drawings and rarely shown drawings on paper. —Elena Clavarino