This exhibition was open to view by appointment, during May 2014, at Gallery 286, London.

PATRICK BOYD, b.1960, is one of the most talented artists to emerge from the Royal College of Art Holography Unit, which was active during the period 1985 – 95.

His early interest was in using holography for fashion illustration and he worked in the Pulse Laser Studio with costume designers, make-up artists and stylists in a way more usually associated with photography. This innovative approach was completely in keeping with the aesthetic of the time and his work was featured prominently in magazines such as Blitz, iD and Creative Review. It also caught the fancy of seminal 80s designer Zandra Rhodes who commissioned some life-size holograms of models wearing her dresses, for her Bond Street store.

Boyd was the awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to the USA and enjoyed a residency at the New York Museum of Holography. While there he adopted a more documentary approach and worked with motor-driven handheld cameras to shoot action sequences on location. These were subsequently converted into ‘holographic stereograms’ which allow a few seconds of movement to be reconstructed, rather like looking at a 3-dimensional flickbook.

Further residencies in Japan and Germany followed and Boyd took part in solo and group exhibitions of holography internationally, building a solid reputation for creative image-making, and a flair for original display techniques. His life sized photographic  cut-outs onto which holograms were mounted, and box frames which juxtaposed photos with holograms, effortlessly elevated the medium into a Fine Art Context.

As the 90s progressed, Boyd’s young family required a more substantial income than holography could then provide and he made the transition into commercial and portrait photography, where he has now been working for almost twenty years.

The reason for this mini-retrospective is a celebration of Boyd’s recent announcement that he is planning a new holographic studio. This will provide the opportunity for him to both create new work and to pass on his skills to a new generation of holographic artists. I join him in looking forward to what the future has in store.

Jonathan Ross  May 2014 

Most of Boyd's holograms in the collection, plus a few others, can be seen in this short video.

Work on show

1. Here’s the Church…* 1986, multi-channel reflection hologram

2. Beano 1987, multicolour animated reflection hologram

3. Temporary Measure 1990, reduced image pulse laser hologram

4. Temporary Measure 1988, embossed holographic stereogram

5. Breakfast 1988, reduced image pulse laser hologram

6. Lucy in a Tin Hat 1989, pulsed laser portrait hologram

7. Best Friend   1987, reduced image pulse laser hologram

8. Busby B 1987, reduced image pulse laser hologram

9. Bop 1987, reduced image pulse laser hologram

10. Huxley’s Day Out 1992, holographic stereogram + photographic prints

11. Virtual Dialogues 1993,  full colour stereogram on metal shim  

12. Cows in Motion 1991, three holographic stereograms

13. Twin Towers 1990,  holographic stereogram + photographic print

14. Atlantic City, 3 Scenes in a Day,

      Third Time Lucky 1990, holographic stereogram + photographic print

15. Jackson Makes it to Manhattan 1990, holographic stereogram + photographic print

16. Christmas Shopping in Köln* 1994,  holographic stereogram triptych

17. Looking Forward*   1993,  composite holographic stereogram

All works except * are from the Jonathan Ross Collection

More details about Patrick's work at: www.patrickboyd.co.uk