In 1957 Boyce arrived in New York
His early work is forged in the excitement of the 1950s and Abstract Expressionism. He uses bits of magazines, found pictures, and random texts. Soon he has a glossary of colorful patterns he paints over everything. The collages grow and get deeper and by the end of the 60s the canvases are big.
The 1970s roll around and ideas encountered on his spiritual quest find their way into his paintings. He moves from Park Slope to Greenpoint and from canvas to paper. Letters, words, and sentences painted freehand, one on top of another, form dense visual fields.
Boyce often writes the source material onto the back: These become titles. The pictures are illegible but the backs make great reading: there are quotes from Joseph Campbell, Chief Seattle, George Fox, Bill Wilson, and Rodney King. The list goes on….
“They do not call their house of worship a church.
Their church is the body of worshipers.
They aspire to have that living church become beautiful.
As only God can make it in the spirits of folks kept in harmony
with the divine spirit. In daily lives made beautiful
by following the guidance of the light within.
(Quotation unattributed on painting)
Feb 3, 2001
People, I just want to say, you know, Can we all get along? Rodney King’s Statement
“This we know the Earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the Earth.
from Chief Seattle XIV
10 April 1992