Merric Boyd was an artist – a studio potter and sculptor who, in his last decade, made thousands of expressionistic drawings reflecting his strong sense of family, creative endeavour, ‘genteel’ poverty and the impact of epilepsy on his life
Born in Melbourne in 1888, the second child of artists Emma Minnie and Arthur Merric Boyd, Merric is rightly considered to be Australia’s first studio potter as well as an eccentric, a visionary and a practitioner of a lesser art. He began potting in 1910 when studio pottery was not popular or even widely heard of. His style was extremely distinctive and sculptural and his use of native flora and fauna and rural subjects as decorative motifs was unique.
Merric struggled all his life with epilepsy which had huge impact on himself and his family. Gradually the strain of modelling in clay and his deteriorating health became too great. In the last ten to fifteen years of his life, before his death in 1959, he gave himself up entirely to drawing producing thousands of works on paper.
There are over 60 sketchbooks by Merric Boyd in the Bundanon Collection, 10 of which have been selected for display as part of the fantastic forms exhibit. Filled with coloured pencil and watercolour drawings, Merric would buy the sketchbooks from his local news agency and quickly fill them with an abundance of imagery, inspired by his rural setting at ‘Open Country’ in Murrumbeena, Victoria.
Merric’s sketchbooks reflect a life guided by a strong sense of family, religion, creative endeavour, ‘genteel’ poverty and his experiences with epilepsy.
Sketchbook 1
Merric Boyd, Sketchbook, c1940s-50s, pencil, coloured pencil, crayon, pen, ink & watercolour. Digital Imaging Credit: Rob Little, RLDI.
Sketchbook 2
Merric Boyd, Sketchbook, c1940s-50s, pencil, coloured pencil, crayon, pen, ink & watercolour. Digital Imaging Credit: Rob Little, RLDI.
