IAN BOYDEN
EDUCATION
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.
M.A. in the History of Art, December 1998.
Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut.
B.A. in Art History and East Asian Studies, May 1995.
Professional Experience
1997–present Artist: My recent paintings and books explore how objects inhabit the imagination when their inception—their material formation—is directed by pigments made of things such as fossilized shark teeth, whale earbones, pearls, meteorite dust, and other elemental materials. I am interested in the tension created by the landscapes these materials inhabit or form—often familiar, but clearly in their own language and style of inhabitation. My work relies on sophisticated knowledge of a variety of industrial processes (such as printmaking, bronze casting, and stone carving) and materials and techniques drawn from Chinese painting and calligraphy. In the 1990s, I spent several years in China where I studied the history and practice of Chinese calligraphy, painting, bookmaking, and inkmaking with masters of those arts. There, I became fascinated with ways writing occupies and is shaped by surfaces (paper, stone, bronze, etc.), and my work continues to explore surface/subject tensions. In addition, I am fascinated by linking the literary imagination with that of the visual, and generate works where physical materials adopt agency usually reserved for the literary imagination and, conversely, where the productions of the literary imagination can take hold of the physical, phenomenal world.
1997–present Sole proprietor of Crab Quill Press: Crab Quill Press is dedicated to the production of limited-edition, fine-press artist’s books. The books range from individual artist productions to extensive collaborations between visual and literary artists. Crab Quill Press books have found their way into a number of public collections including the New York Public Library, The Freer Gallery of Art, the Portland Art Museum, and the Rare Book Room of Suzhou University.
1998-2007 Director of the Donald H. Sheehan Gallery, Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA: During my tenure, I curated and organized over 80 exhibitions for both Whitman College and other institutions in the Northwest.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2009
Ian Boyden: Collaborative Artist’s Books. Mills Gallery, Central College, Pella, Iowa.
2008
Let the Stone’s Tell It: Recent paintings and collaborative book with Sam Hamill. Augen Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
Echoes of Earth, Part II. Seven Hills Winery, Walla Walla, WA.
Habitations: Recent paintings and book with Sam Hamill. Davidson Galleries, Seattle, WA
2007
A Selection of Artist Books Produced by Crab Quill Press, Hauser Library, Reed College.
Echoes of Earth: Landscapes Interpreting the Terroir of Eastern Washington. Seven Hills Winery, Walla Walla, Washington.
Shorelines: Paintings by Ian H. Boyden. Augen Gallery, Portland, Oregon (review).
2006
Standing on the Shores of Chaos: Paintings by Ian H. Boyden. Rogers Gallery, Willamette University,
Salem, Oregon (pamphlet/review).
Alchemical Feathers: Paintings and Books by Ian H. Boyden. Foundry Gallery, Walla Walla, Washington
Recent Paintings by Ian Boyden. Davidson Galleries, Seattle, Washington.
2005
Meditations on the Breath of Trees: Paintings by Ian Boyden. Pendleton Center for the Arts, Pendleton, Oregon (pamphlet/review).
Mirror Over Tunguska: Paintings by Ian Boyden. Augen Gallery, Portland, Oregon (catalogue).
Translations from the Azurite: Paintings by Ian Boyden. Ochi Fine Art, Ketchum, Idaho.
Road Through Sleep: Paintings by Ian Boyden. Woodward Canyon Winery, Lowden, Washington.
2004
Virga and the Synaesthesia of Spheres: Paintings by Ian Boyden. Seven Hills Winery, Walla Walla,
Washington.
Primordia and Other Fancies: Paintings by Ian Boyden. Grapefields, Walla Walla, Washington.
2003Woven and Unwoven Light: New Paintings. Crab Quill Press, Walla Walla, Washington, Part of the “ArtWalla Art Promenade.”
2002
Paging Through: Books by Crab Quill Press. Seven Hills Winery, Walla Walla, Washington.
1990
The Galloping Ghost. Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jinagsu province, P.R. China.
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2007
Maryhill Museum, Goldendale, Washington.
Lower Columbia College, Washington.
2006
Irvine Fine Art Center, Irvine, California.
2005
Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, South Korea.
Simon Edwards Gallery, Yakima, Washington.
White Lotus Gallery, Eugene, Oregon.
New York Hall of Science, Brooklyn, New York.
2004
Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon.
Laura Russo Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, Alabama.
2003
Shaanxi Provincial Art Museum, Xi’an, P.R.China.
2002
Contemporary Crafts Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
Walla Walla Foundry, Walla Walla, Washington.
2000
National Taiwan Arts Education Institute, Taipei, Taiwan.
Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey.
2000
Walla Walla Foundry, Walla Walla, Washington.
1999
Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, Los Angeles, California.
Bush Barn Art Center, Salem Oregon.
1998
Moolpha Group, Seoul, South Korea.
Newport Visual Art Center, Newport, Oregon.
Wessel and Lieberman Booksellers, Seattle, Washington.
1997
Laura Russo Gallery, Portland, Oregon.
1996
Gulou Exhibition Hall, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, P.R. China.
COMISSIONS & COLLABORATIONS
2009
Field of the Sky. Unique book made from an iron meteorite with an accompanying painting made using the meteorite dust. Commissioned by Whitman College in memory of Rina Imperial. Hall Of Science, Whitman College, Walla Walla, Washington.
2008
Habitations. A collaborative manuscript book of paintings by Ian Boyden and poem by Sam Hamill. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
Ochi Grave Marker. Commemorative stone marker for the Fred and Yoshiko Ochi commissioned by the Ochi family. Idaho Falls, Idaho.
River Through the Valley of Fire. Graphic design of an exhibition catalogue for American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California.
Coexistence with Fire. Graphic design of an exhibition catalogue for American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California.
Etched in Stone: The Geology of City of Rocks National Reserve and Castle Rocks State Park, Idaho. Graphic design of a book for Idaho Geological Society, Moscow, Idaho.
2007
Conversations Across Time. Graphic design of an exhibition catalogue for C. G. Boerner, New York, New York.
2005
Near to the Place Where They Should Meet. A collaborative manuscript book of drawings and paintings by Ian H. Boyden and Timothy C. Ely. Jointly published by Crab Quill Press and Planetary Collage.
2004
Convergences. A large-scale stone and bronze sculpture by Ian and Jennifer Boyden. Commissioned by Blue Mountain Arts Alliance and the City of Walla Walla.
The Creator is Without Words. A stone stele featuring the calligraphy of Bai Qianshen engraved into a basalt column. Produced for Walla Walla Foundry, Walla Walla, Washington.
The Irreverences, Provocations & Connivances of Uncle Skulky. An artist’s book featuring a suite of twenty-one prints, one self-portrait and several original drawings by Frank Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
The Field of Aki. An artist’s book featuring a poem by Kakinomoto no Asomi Hitomaro (Japanese, fl. Late 7th c.); written translation by Edward Morris; calligraphy by Bai Qianshen; and prints by Frank Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
2003
Serpentine Torso. A stone and bronze collaborative sculpture with Wayne Chabre.
Evidence of Night. An artist’s book featuring poems by Jennifer Boyden, prints and drawings by Frank Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
2001
Twenty Views of Cascade Head. An artist’s book featuring prints by Charles Chu and Frank Boyden, poems by J. Cailin Oakes and Ian Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
Parts and Pieces: A Brief Bestiary. An artist’s book featuring prints and drawings by Rick Bartow and Frank Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
2000
Bird Spirits: Nine Pieces for Jane Boyden. An artist’s book featuring piano pieces by William Bolcom, prints by Frank Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
1999
Peach Blossom Fish: Selected Poems Composed & Calligraphed by Chang Ch’ung-ho. An artist’s book featuring poems and calligraphy by Chang Ch’ung-ho and translations by Hans H. Frankel, Ian Boyden, and Edward Morris. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
2000
A Carousel at Birth. An artist’s book featuring a poem by Ian Boyden, prints by Frank Boyden. Portland, Oregon: Salient Seedling Press.
Unique and Fine Press Artist’s Books
ARTISTS BOOKS
2006
The Oystercatcher and the Pearl Feather: A Sequence of Paintings by Ian H. Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
2005
Segments Along A Horizon: A Sequence of Paintings by Ian H. Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
2003
On the Synaesthesia of Spheres. Watercolors and essay by Ian Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington:Crab Quill Press.
2002
The Augury of a Cranefly. Collected, Composed & Calligraphed by Ian Boyden. Walla Walla, Washington: Crab Quill Press.
1998
A Mischievity of Craneflies. Ian Boyden. Otis, Oregon: Crab Quill Press.
PUBLICATIONS
Echoes of Earth: Landscapes Interpreting Terroir. Walla Walla, Washington: Seven Hills Winery, 2007.
“Some Observations about Frank Boyden as Collaborator and Accounts of His Book Projects at Crab Quill
Press” in Frank Boyden: Prints and Books. Co-authored with Prudence Roberts. Salem, Oregon: Hallie-Ford Museum of Art, 2006.
“The Way can be found in bricks and shards: Juxtapositions of image, text and calligraphic style in the workof Hua Rende,” (translated by Mao Qiujin) in Zhongguo Shufa (Chinese Calligraphy) 2006: vol. 11, pg. 77-80, Beijing, P.R. China.
“Reflections on Forgotten Surfaces: Hua Rende’s exhibition of calligraphy at Whitman College,” (translated by Mao Qiujin) in Zhongguo Mohen meishu daokan (Ink Marks), 2006: vol. 11, pg. 1, Nangjing, P.R. China.
Roots of Clouds, Transcendence of Stones. Co-authored with Jennifer Boyden and Terry Toedtemeier. Walla Walla, Washington: Donald H. Sheehan Gallery (Whitman College), 2006.
Reflections on Forgotten Surfaces: The Calligraphy of Hua Rende. Walla Walla, Washington: Donald H. Sheehan Gallery (Whitman College), 2005.
The Tables of Jupiter: Graphic Work by Timothy C. Ely. Walla Walla, Washington: Donald H. Sheehan Gallery (Whitman College), 2004.
“Introduction” in Art of Ink in America—2002. Portland, Oregon: Contemporary Crafts Gallery, 2002.
Envoys: Prints by Rick Bartow. Walla Walla, Washington: Whitman College, January 2002.
Amid the Shore Reeds: A Japanese Screen from the Davis Collection. Walla Walla, Washington: Whitman College, January 2001.
Stone Brushes: Three Calligraphers from Suzhou. Portland, Oregon: Contemporary Crafts Gallery, July 2000.
A Carousel at Birth. Ian Boyden and Frank Boyden. Portland, Oregon: Salient Seedling Press, 1997.
“Discussing Eastern Jin Epitaphs in Conjunction with some Notes on Debates Concerning the Orchid Pavilion,” translation from Chinese, original article by Hua Rende. Early Medieval China 3 (August 1997). Kalamazoo: Western Michigan University.
The Peripatetic Brush: Four Contemporary Chinese Calligraphers and Their Use of the Past. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University, 1995.