My Life in Art - Katie Boyce
Katie Boyce is a freelance museum and art gallery consultant who is currently Project Manager for the Friends of the Heseltine Gallery. Amongst other things, she works to increase the gallery’s audience numbers and create a programme of exhibitions and events; we are very grateful to have Katie, as she has made such a positive impact. She has shared with us six artworks that represent her life and mean something to her, along with explanations for each choice. Thank you, Katie, for sharing your life in art with us, as well as all you have done for the gallery!
Cold Dark Matter: an Exploded View by Cornelia Parker (1991)
Cornelia Parker, Cold Dark Matter: an Exploded View, 1991, wood, metal, plastic, ceramic, textile and wire, 400 x 500 x 500 cm (Tate, London)
Katie: This piece of work was one of the original pieces that inspired my art journey. I came across Cornelia Parker during my A Levels and was instantly drawn in to her ideas and methodologies. The idea of blowing up a shed and its contents and then piecing it all back together, mid explosion, fascinated me; I had so many questions. I visited the IKON gallery in Birmingham to view the work first hand and was drawn not only to the pieces suspended in the air, but to the drama that is cast on the walls. It felt like I was part of the explosion and time stood still. From that day, I understood that art was not only about the work itself, but also about the story behind it, the feelings it gave me and the memories it evoked.
The Leaf Stalk Room by Andy Goldsworthy (2007)
Andy Goldsworthy, The Leaf Stalk Room, 2007, installation for layered land
Katie: I have always been drawn to nature - as a child I was always the tomboy, collecting bugs and climbing trees. Being inspired by nature for my own work, I came across Andy Goldsworthy quite early on. He has always been an inspiration and someone that has always made art look so effortless. He allows nature to be even more beautiful than it already is. I visited the Yorkshire Sculpture Park during my Fine Art Degree and saw his exhibition, which spanned the whole of the site. It was really hard to choose just one piece by this artist, but this was particularly amazing! It was hard to imagine how he had hung 10,500 horse chestnut leaf stems, pinned together with blackthorns over a 12m span. Now, I look at nature very differently and sometimes look to see if I can find any land art on my travels.
The Exile: ‘Heavy is the price I paid for love’ by Thomas Cooper Gotch (1929-30)
Thomas Cooper Gotch, The Exile: ‘Heavy is the price I paid for love’, 1929-30, oil on canvas, 62 x 53 cm (Alfred East Art Gallery, Kettering)
Katie: Whilst I was Curator at the Alfred East Art Gallery, Kettering, I fell in love with this painting. Before getting the job, I had always been drawn to sculptural works and installations, but this painting changed that. The whole collection was different to my art background, as I was walking into 19th and 20th century portraits and landscapes. Who was she? What was the meaning of the artworks title? Her eyes followed me no matter where she was in the building, stores and galleries, even in a catalogue I wrote. She had a sense of mystery about her. What might have been a straight forward portrait is given an added symbolism by the emotive title and the exotic colour and pattern of the tunic. She will always hold fond memories for me as the girl that made me fall in love with portraits.
Head of a Man with Red Eyes by L.S. Lowry (1938)
L. S. Lowry, Head of a Man with Red Eyes, 1938, oil on canvas
Katie: This is another of my favourite portraits, one that I included in an exhibition I curated at Rugby Art Gallery, called ‘About Face’. The painting was a response to the death of Lowry’s mother, after he had nursed her for six years. The emotional response to a moment in time and the vulnerability that the artist shows just draws me in deeper. I want to know more about the artist and his state of mind, especially when compared to his Self Portrait of 1925. For me this piece has an important message that art is a positive way to express yourself. Lowry was bottling up some tension and in his own words ‘was letting off some steam’. I think art is a healing process and can help some people put down on paper things they can’t get out in words. Art is good for the mind!
Standing Figure by Claudette Johnson (2017)
Claudette Johnson, Standing Figure, 2017, charcoal, pastel and masking tape on paper (Rugby Art Gallery and Museum)
Katie: This portrait was featured in the same exhibition as my previous choice and it holds a fond memory for me as I gained external funding for Rugby Art Gallery to purchase it for its collection. For me, adding to a galleries permanent collection is a great honour; it is a lasting legacy of my time there. At the same time as purchasing this piece, I also managed to purchase two artworks by Turner Prize winner Lubaina Himid, but I chose this piece, because the artist isn’t as well known, but should be! The portrait depicts a Black woman who never meets our gaze, but does not seem shy at all. The portrait is un-staged and intimate. All the works I have chosen capture brief moments in time, temporary in life but endless in art. The stories behind them, and the questions they evoke, inspire me.
may-por-é by Rachel Berwick (1996-present)
Rachel Berwick, still from may-por-é, 1996-present, installation
Katie: My personal work reflects on nature, the environment and extinction. Rachel Berwick’s work is a mix of nature, art and history and an example of how art can be used in a powerful way. This is completely different to my previous choices and a piece that I wouldn’t normally be drawn to. I am not keen on video or sound art, however, the subject matter, production and history involved connected me to my own work and that of other artists like Berwick. Art can do wonderful things and Rachel Berwick has managed to bring a language on the brink of extinction back to life, through the voice of parrots. Please investigate this piece of work for yourselves and read the story behind it. You can watch a video of the installation and learn more about it here.
Why do you #LOVEArt?
Katie: I love that art is subjective - we all like different things. I like how art makes me feel and the memories I can associate with it. I also think art is very powerful and it can help us express and explain some of the hardest topics facing us in our world today. Art is a voice, it shouldn’t be censored and art galleries should facilitate artists to help get messages out there that other organisations can’t, or are afraid to do so.