Arthur Merric Bloomfield Boyd AC OBE (1920 - 1999)

Born 24 Jul 1920 in Murrumbeena, Victoria, Australia

Ancestors

Died 24 Apr 1999 at age 78 in Victoria, Australia

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Biography

Arthur Boyd AC OBE is Notable.

Arthur was born about 1920. He is the son of Merric Boyd and Doris Gough.

Arthur Boyd ranks among the most famous artists in Australia, with the likes of Sydney Nolan, John Coburn and Brett Whitely. Arthur Boyd was a master in a range of media including ceramics, painting and printmaking. His work spanned the best part of fifty years from early in 1930s to his death in April 1999.

Arthur Merric Bloomfield Boyd was born on 24th July 1920 in Murrumbeena, Victoria. He studied and mastered oil painting at an early age through his association with his grandfather, Arthur Merric, with whom he lived at Rosebud on the Mornington Peninsula (from the age of 16 till 19). Many of the seascapes and landscapes produced early in Boyd’s career were the product of his work at a nearby artists’ camp and his relationship with Wilfred McCulloch. These works are notable for Boyd’s innovative technique using a palette knife. (He learnt ceramics from his father Merric Boyd).

According to the Australian Encyclopaedia of Art, Allan McCulloch mentioned the effect the Second World War (WWII) had on the life of Arthur Boyd who perceived WWII as the ultimate evil. Boyd’s suffering during his years in military service led to a number of psychological pictures where his works seemed to spiral out of control in what is seen as the tragedy of human existence.

Through Boyd’s association with the Contemporary Art Society, he gained an understanding of expressionism, child art, primitivism and the value of studying both old and modern masters. Boyd was also inspired to paint works of mining towns and religious paintings following the discovery of a set of reproductions of the works of Breughel.

In 1957 Boyd was inspired by the work of Chagall to produce his Half-Caste Bride series of paintings which were exhibited in both the Whitechapel and Tate Galleries.

On Arthur Boyd’s return in 1971, he took a position as an artist in residence at the Australian National University (ANU) and purchased Riverdale, his residence near Shoalhaven.

In 1975, Boyd donated a large collection of his works to the National Gallery of Australia. Many of his works were completed at his studios in Hampstead, London, Suffolk and Riverdale including his landscapes and river-scapes such as Pulpit Rock.

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AWARDS

Officer of the Order of the British Empire 1 January 1970 for services to art. ^[2]

Officer of the Order of Australia 26 January 1979 service to the visual arts.^[3]

Honorary Doctor of Letters, University of Melbourne 1988^[4]

Irish Australian of the Year 1988 ^[5]

Companion of the Order of Australia In recognition of his service to the visual arts and to the development of Australian artists and crafts people, on 8 June 1992^[6]

1995 Australian of the Year for contribution to Australian art and his generosity to the Australian people.^[7]

In January 1998, Arthur was named Australia Post’s 1999 Australian Legend and was represented on a stamp set.^[8]

Sources

1. ↑ https://www.canberra.edu.au/about-uc/art-collection/the-art-collection/arthur-boyd text in brackets-Derry Talvainn
2. ↑ https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/search
3. ↑ https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/search
4. ↑ https://about.unimelb.edu.au/notable-alumni-staff/honorary-degree-holders
5. ↑ http://www.dingonet.com/articles/art/arthurbo.html
6. ↑ https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/search
7. ↑ Lewis, Wendy (2010). Australians of the Year. Pier 9 Press. ISBN 978-1-74196-809-5.
8. ↑ https://australiapostcollectables.com.au/articles/australia-post-legends-award

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