In the months leading up to a show, Claude Boocock uses her home as her own personal gallery, hanging her latest work on every accessible nail.
Gracing her walls for the past year—whether it’s the downstairs stairwell, the office, the living room or up the stairs to her studio—is her latest passion: ravens.
For almost 18 months, Boocock, a painter and sculptor who’s been living in Jasper since 1970, has been consumed by the playful black birds.
She said it all started when she saw a black-on-black abstract painting in a decor magazine. That image struck her and made her think of an abstract show called “Raven.” But once she started painting, she found herself straying from the abstract approach and leaning more toward a more realistic representation of her muse—at least as realistic as she can get.
And 18 months later, there are nearly 40 pieces—in four different mediums—ready to display at her exhibit “A Raven Folly,” opening at the Jasper-Yellowhead Museum and Archives April 4.
“This is my first solo show,” said Boocock, who has participated in countless shows with the Jasper Artist Guild in the past and has also partnered with other artists for openings here and in Edmonton.
A Raven Folly, which will hang in the museum from April 4 until April 27, includes four sculptures, all done in Boocock’s signature mosaic style.
One, called “Two-Steppin’ Pair”, incorporates one of Boocock’s signature pieces—shoes. Atop of two high heels sit two sculpted ravens, adorned in black glass and moulded medal.
Another, titled “Great Raven Spirit”, utilizes another of Boocock’s favourite muses—mannequins.
Covered in shattered pieces of stone in matte greys, as well as shiny blacks, beiges and whites, the “Great Raven Spirit” hangs on an angle, as if it’s a bird in flight. Adding to that effect is the addition of metal mesh, wrapped around the bust and fluttering out at either side like wings.
Boocock has been turning mannequins into gorgeous mosaics full of colour, texture and pattern for a few years.
But her sculptures only make up a small percentage of the work she will be sharing next month. Adorning the museum’s walls will be 11 acrylic paintings, depicting anything from ravens eating a fresh kill to perching atop a roof or a tree branch, 10 brush and ink sketches—the most realistic of all Boocock’s pieces—and 14 encaustic paintings.
An encaustic painting is one that is created with heated beeswax. The wax comes in multiple colours and can be mixed together to create other shades.
“I love texture, and encaustics allow me a lot of texture,” said Boocock, who also incorporated different patterned paper into her encaustic paintings to create even more texture and depth.
Using such different mediums, from sculpture to encaustics, is what helped Boocock keep her interest in ravens for all those months.
She admits, though, that at times it was hard to find inspiration.
“Especially with the brush and ink sketches, I couldn’t get going on them,” she said. “But then something would spark some interest and I’d do six pieces in a row.”
Those sparks could come from anything, whether it was the positioning of a raven on her front lawn or the mythology that surrounds the bird in different cultures.
“I read a couple of books on ravens—they’re really fascinating,” she said, adding “because people in town know I’m doing this, they also come up to me with raven facts.”
Some of the mythology has even made it into Boocock’s work. In her studio, two paintings hang, one on either side of her easel, each depicting a different myth.
On the left is the Haida story, which says the raven brought the sun, moon, stars, water and fire to the world. On the right is the Chinese story of the three-legged raven.
“In Chinese mythology, the raven is always a messenger for gods and goddesses and he’s always associated with the sun.
“It wasn’t until the advent of agriculture that he became a nasty beast.”
A Raven Folly will open with a reception at the Jasper-Yellowhead Museum and Archives, April 4. The event will take place from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Nicole Veerman
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