**** DORIS BOYD ****
A LIFE IN FAMILY AND ART

"Doris was a marvellous artist and a wonderful human being." David Boyd


Click on the thumbnail images to enlarge them


Doris Boyd c.1920

Doris Gough was born in 1889. She was the youngest of the six children of journalist and editor Evelyn Gough (nee Rigg) and naval officer Thomas Bunbury Gough. Her father died when she was ten years of age. She grew up in St Kilda. In 1908, after completing her schooling, she studied art at the National Gallery Art School. While there she met and formed a close relationship with Penleigh Boyd. It was through him that she met his brother Merric.


Portrait of Doris Boyd Penleigh Boyd
c.1908 Oil on Cigar Box Lid 305 x 228 mm

Doris and Merric Boyd were married in October 1915. Merric had already established a sculptor's studio residence at 8 Wahroongaa Crescent Murrumbeena. From the first year of their marriage, Merric parent's, Arthur Merric Boyd and Emma Minnie Boyd and Doris's mother Evelyn lived adjacent to Merric and Doris. For some years, the extended Boyd family occupied the entire northern flank of Wahroongaa Crescent.


Doris Boyd with Dorothy Rathausky
and daughter Karin at Open Country c. 1917

In late 1917, Merric sailed to England to serve in the First World War, leaving Doris with baby Lucy, who was born in August 1916. Merric was overseas for two years and during that time, Doris and Lucy lived with Evelyn. Open Country was rented to Victor and Dorothy Rathausky, who with their family became life-long friends of the Boyds. Merric returned to Australia in late 1919.


Merric and Doris Boyd with baby Lucy
at Open Country 1917

From the first year of marriage, Doris worked closely with Merric, sharing the decoration of his pots. She helped Merric sell them at city stores like Mair and Lyne, Georges, the Mutual Stores, The Primrose Pottery Shop and Lily Ronald's florist shop, and gave him a great deal of support when he was firing his kiln.

Click on images to see enlargements


Sculptured head of Doris
Merric Boyd c. 1914 - 1915 plaster 370 (h) mm*

David Boyd "The firing of the kiln was spread over two or three days. It would need to be stoked at one or two hour intervals depending on the stage of firing. Merric and Doris would sit in the brown room, chatting together during the night. Merric would catch up on his sleep over the two or three days it took the kiln to cool."

Doris's decoration was different to Merric's, and therefore can be recognized on his pottery. She generally painted landscape scenes, these being more impressionistic and delicate than Merric's. She also painted in oils and watercolours, often using the central family room at Open Country, the brown room, as her studio. She sketched and painted in the Open Country garden, and on family picnics and sketching trips in the local area and further a field, such as on the Mornington Peninsula and around Westernport Bay.


Doris Boyd sketching on the Yarra River
Emma Minnie Boyd 1914 Watercolour 255 x 355 mm

Lucy Beck "She used to paint a lot of memories of dawn. She had a truly intuitive feeling. Granny Boyd had a fantastic technique, but she didn't have this wonderful sort of impressionistic feeling that my mother had. I loved my mother's painting. Painting was to her the important thing, and the children."

In the early days, Doris frequently exhibited her paintings. Her last exhibition was with friend and fellow artist John Yule in May 1947. In addition to painting, Doris wrote prose and poetry.

David Boyd "I suppose you'd say that Doris was essentially an intellectual, whereas Merric was all emotion, and creative fire. But there certainly was no lack of creative fire in Doris. She was constantly at it. She was a very loving woman. She was marvellous. She was very intelligent and had a great wit. She was abundant in her energy and was always on the go. They were both intensely active in a creative way."

The birth of Arthur followed Lucy, in 1920, Guy in 1923, David in 1924 and Mary in 1926. While busy bringing children into the world, Doris provided the foundation for Merric to become 'the King of Melbourne Potters' as he was called in a 1923 newspaper article.


Open Country Murrumbeena
Emma Minnie Boyd 1921 Watercolour 340 x 500 mm

In the 1920's, Doris and Merric adopted the Christian Science faith. Christian Science gave Doris and Merric a great deal of comfort and support through some of the more challenging periods of their lives. One of the greatest of these occurred in 1926, when Merric's pottery was destroyed by fire. As a result of the fire, later on that year, Merric accepted for several months, a teaching position at the New England Girls' School in Armidale, New South Wales. A public appeal was established to raise money to build Merric a new pottery and in 1927 it was completed, allowing him to fire his own pottery again.

Despite the financial difficulties brought on by the fire and the Depression that followed in 1929, the Boyd children were always fed, and while their clothes may have sometimes been worn and patched, they were loved and always cared for.


Doris Boyd with her children. From left; Guy, Arthur,
Lucy, Mary and David in 1929

David Boyd "Times were certainly lean during the Depression years. Despite this I never remember not having adequate clothing, even if those clothes were tatty and mended hand-me-downs. And we never went without food. Doris always believed in feeding us all properly. She gave us food and warm clothing and an abundance of love. They were the top priorities."

Click on images to see enlargements


Doris Boyd
Arthur Boyd 1934 chalk 480 x 320 mm
Reproduced with the permission of the Bundanon Trust

Doris and Merric always encouraged their children to explore and practice art, believing it to be a form of normal and everyday expression.

David Boyd "There were always plenty of places for us to draw and there was always plenty to draw with and on. We were permitted to carve and scratch and draw and scribble anything on the walls. At that time Guy, Mary and I slept in my mother's bedroom. We carved a dragon through the plaster. I can't recall how long it took, but I remember working on our dragon over a period of time. It might have been months, perhaps even longer. Doris encouraged us. She used to compliment us on the way our dragon was coming along."

Lucy Beck " I remember Arthur drew and carved a landscape into the wall in mummy's bedroom. It was about two metres high and three metres wide and had a huge tree in it. A lot of it was in a soft blue colour."

In the early 1930's, Max Nicholson, a university graduate in English Literature, became a friend of the Boyd family, initially coming to Open Country to recruit members to the local scout group. He introduced the Boyds to new books, ideas and people, widening the intellectual scope of Open Country and encouraging a tradition of open and lively discussion that would continue in the decades to come.


Max Nicholson
Doris Boyd Undated Oil 400 x 300 mm *

David Boyd "Max was a very polite and intelligent youth. He became a very close friend of the family, particularly of my mother. Later on, he brought people such as Josl Bergner, Peter Herbst and a number of university lecturers and graduates to Murrumbeena. He introduced a level of literature that we may not have had. He widened the scope at Murrumbeena and was a catalyst for so many things."

In 1934, Doris and Merric worked for the Australian Porcelain Insulator Company at Yarraville. The company made insulators from porcelain. Merric threw this form of clay to make pots while Doris shared the decoration with him. Doris and Merric would leave for Yarraville early in the morning and return late at night. They remained there for only a few months, the journey and time away from their family being too great.

With the outbreak of World War Two, Doris and Merric saw their three sons enter the armed forces.

David Boyd " She had great faith. She believed that we would be alright and she turned out to be right, one way or another. But it didn't stop her from being anxious. Mary told me this. She talked to Mary at length about her feelings at the time, about how awful it was. Not only just for Doris herself being a mother, but for others too, their husbands and brothers being carted off in the First War and then the system coming along to claim their children in the Second. That would have had an affect on her."

After the War, as family members returned to Open Country, they brought with them their own families and friends and social circles. There was a coming together of a wide range of people, including artists and intellectuals and writers. The post-war environment at Open Country was exceptionally stimulating.


Doris Boyd
John Perceval 1948 Oil

David Boyd "There were parties and gatherings and so on; it was all very nice and friendly. Max Nicholson, the Langleys, the Coutts, Sid Nolan, Charlie and Barbara Blackman, and Tim and Betty Burstall would come over. I think Josl Bergner was still in Melbourne at that time. There'd be 50 people or more in the brown room. Maybe I'd be playing piano and people would be dancing around, maybe smaller groups would be discussing something to do with the arts or literature or politics, anything."


The Boyd family at Open Country c.1951

Doris was often at the centre of these discussions. She established many enduring friendships throughout these years.

David Boyd "Doris was always absorbed in whatever she was doing, whether it was painting or drawing or writing, and took an interest in what we were all doing. She was greatly loved by everybody."

Lucy Beck "My mother was very interested in writing. It's really wonderful that she had this time, discussing things."


Mummy Taking Rest
Merric Boyd c.1954 pencil 182 x 242 mm

In the late 1950's, with all of her children living away from Open Country, Doris was busy caring for Merric. He died at Open Country in September 1959. Doris died at Open Country nine months later, on 13 June 1960.


Potter's Wife in Garden at Murrumbeena
Arthur Boyd 1964-67 Oil on canvas 1143 x 1092
Reproduced with the permission of the Bundanon Trust

David Boyd "Something went out of my life then; more than just Doris. I used to have high peaks of ebullience; a marvelous uplifting sense. But after Doris died, I never really felt that again. It wasn't that I thought Doris was immortal. I just couldn't imagine her being not with us."


Portrait of Doris Boyd
Hermia Boyd c.1962 Oil on Glass 290 x 220 mm *

 

 


THE ART OF DORIS BOYD

Paintings

Click on images to see enlargements


Untitled Undated
Watercolour *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 220 x 340 mm *

Untitled c. 1930 Oil
380 x 330 mm **

Early Morning c.1920 Oil
476 x 443 mm *


Untitled Undated
Watercolour 265 x 250 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 275 x 250 mm *

Port Melbourne / The Docks Williamstown c.1930
Watercolour 530 x 355 mm *

The Light c.1935
Oil 640 x 500 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 125 x 150 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 190 x 220 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 270 x 360 mm *

Trees Undated
Watercolour 230 x 290 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 330 x 415 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 180 x 240 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 330 x 415 mm *

Seascape c. 1930 Oil
565 x 762 mm *

Untitled Undated
Watercolour 180 x 245 mm *

Portrait of Merric Boyd Undated
Watercolour 350 x 260 mm *

Bush Scene Undated
Paint 262 x 235 mm *

Untitled Undated
Oil 320 x 180 mm *

Portrait of David Boyd c. 1930
Oil 260 x 210 mm *


Portrait of David Boyd c. 1935

Click on images to see enlargements


Untitled Undated c. 1920
Oil 490 x 455 mm *
David and Hermia Boyd Collection

Untitled Undated Oil *

Beach with Boats & Umbrella
c. 1934 Oil 545 x 695 mm *

Untitled Undated Watercolour
175 x 250 mm *

Portrait of a Woman
Undated Oil 400 x 340 mm *

Max Nicholson (incomplete)
Undated Oil 400 x 300 mm *


Yvonne & Arthur Boyd House Beaumaris 1954-55 Watercolour
390 x 510 mm *

Untitled Undated Watercolour *



Untitled Undated
Watercolour 180 x 245 mm *

Moses in the bulrushes c. early 1950s Watercolour on paper
350 x 370 mm


Lucy Boyd aged about 21 years
c. 1936 Oil on canvas
340 x 290 mm

Pavlova c. 1929
Watercolour on paper
490 x 360 mm

Portrait of Merric Boyd*
Watercolour c.1950 335 x 245 mm

Fruit trees in blossom, Murrumbeena
Oil on board c.1930 310 x 230 mm
Painted Tiles


Click on images to see enlargements


Rural Landscape c.1947
174 x 479 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Rural Scene c.1947
308 x 920 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Coastal Scene Undated
150 x 150 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Rural House Undated
150 x 150 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Yacht & Sea Gulls
Undated 153 x 153 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Figure by the Sea
Undated 153 x 153 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra


Painted under Tree
Undated 222 x 307 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Untitled Undated 153 x 153 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra
Ceramic Decoration

Jug with trees
Decoration by Doris Boyd
1930 H: 168 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra


Jug
Decoration by Doris Boyd
1915 H: 160 mm *

Vase
Decoration by Doris Boyd *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Vase
Decoration by Doris Boyd *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Vase with seascape
Decoration by Doris Boyd
1930 H: 92 mm


Vase
Decoration by Doris Boyd
1938 H: 140 mm


Vase
Decoration by Doris Boyd
1926 H: 170 mm *



Vase
Decoration by Doris Boyd
c. 1923 H 77 mm *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra
Modeling
  

Protection
1936 150 x 160 mm *

Small Figures *
Collection: Bundanon Trust, Nowra

Return to Start

***************************

This web site was conceived and written by Colin Smith, and developed by Paul Caine and Colin Smith with the help and support of Lucy Beck and David Boyd

Quotations in 'Doris Boyd; A Life in Family and Art' have been taken from interviews with Lucy Beck and David Boyd by Colin Smith in 1997, except for David Boyd's first quote (2003)

David Boyd has granted permission to reproduce the art work of Doris Boyd,
Merric Boyd and Hermia Boyd on this web site

Bundanon Trust has granted permission to reproduce the drawings and
painting by Arthur Boyd on this web site

Thank you to Niki Mortimer and the Bundanon Trust for their help
in the making of this site

Art work photographed by * Paul Caine ** Colin Smith
2003

Any images of art work by Doris Boyd, that could be used for this web site would be appreciated tohalu@optusnet.com.au

*** Other Web Sites By Us ***

Hatton Beck
Merric Boyd His Life & His Art
Friedl Gardner
Jean Langley Painter and Writer
Lucy Boyd Beck A Life In Family and Art


Vase   Decoration by Doris Boyd
1935