Press Release
“From the Shoulder of Giants”
David Boyce
13November – 21December 2013
Opening Reception and Book Launch: Tuesday, 12November 2013, 6:30 – 8:30pm, Artist will be present.
Venue: Blindspot Gallery (24-26A, Aberdeen Street, Central)
Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 11:00am to 7:00pm; closed on public holidays
Blindspot Gallery is delighted to present New Zealand-born, Hong Kong-based artist David Boyce’s first solo exhibition in Hong Kong “From
the Shoulder of Giants”, featuring his most recent photographic series From the Shoulder of Giants. New ZealandThe opening will also see the launch of the accompanying art book.
Boyce’s photographic point of view often looks at issues of identity, reality, perception and memory. From the Shoulder of Giants presents a series of self-portraits composed by a combination of images, paintings and projections that consider how an artist’s development and practice is influenced by works of other artists’. The work questions whether true originality really exists. Boyce says, “none of us are an untainted, unexplored island and I have come to realise the ideal of the great, ingular, heroic artist is something of a mythical construction”.
David Boyce, “Untitled 17: From the Shoulder of Giants,” 2013,Pigment print, 48x80cm, Edition of 8
卜以思，《Untitled 17: From the Shoulder of Giants》，2013，顏料打印，48×80厘米，版本：8
Meaning that advancements rely on previous ideas and discoveries, and are not born anew, “from the shoulder of giants” is a concept with a history that extends back to Greek mythology. In the 12th Century French philosopher, Bernard of Chartres, said, “we are like dwarfs on the shoulders of giants, so that we can see more than they, and things at a greater distance”. Sir Isaac Newton also once wrote, “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants”.
Boyce believes that art is the subject of influences and that all artists are collaborators by default – and that nothing is made that doesn’t build on what came before. In the series, portraits of artists from renaissance artists to abstract impressionists, minimalists to post modernists are layered, appearing as more than a single image, evoking a fantastical and haunting feeling of magic and trickery, smoke and mirrors. Boyce references artists he considers giants, bringing their work and influence into his works, in homage. Media interviews are welcome and can be arranged upon request.
David Boyce, “Untitled 01: From the Shoulder of Giants,” 2012, Pigment print, 60x60cm, Edition of 8+3 APs
卜以思，《Untitled 01: From the Shoulder of Giants》，2012，顏料打印，60×60厘米，版本：8＋3 APs
About David Boyce
New Zealand born David Boyce is a visual artist, based in Hong Kong. After completing an Honours degree in History at Victoria University of Wellington, Boyce became a full-time artist. He has since exhibited in New Zealand, the US, China and Hong Kong, where he is known for his collaborations with Adrian Wong and Hiram To. His works are held in a number of private, public and corporate collections in New Zealand, North America, Europe and Asia.
Boyce’s work is informed by two primary concerns: The exploration of identity, memory, spirituality and language and an area he refers to as ‘Random Beauty’ – an attempt to find beauty in the everyday world. In exploring these themes, he strongly acknowledges a wide range of influences in his work, from renaissance artists to abstract impressionists, minimalists to post modernists.
David Boyce, “Untitled 02: From the Shoulder of Giants,” 2012, Pigment print, 45x30cm, Edition of 8+3 APs
卜以思，《Untitled 02: From the Shoulder of Giants》，2012，顏料打印，45×30厘米， 版本：8＋3 APs
About Blindspot Gallery
Blindspot Gallery is set up to bring contemporary photography, an art form that has entered the blind spot of the Hong Kong art scene to a higher degree of visibility. We feature both established and emerging photographers and artists, mainly from the region but also beyond.
