Joseph Edwin Boultbee (b. 1939)

Joseph Edwin (Joe) Boultbee was born in the UK in 1939 and educated at the King’s School, Canterbury. He trained as a doctor at Trinity College, Dublin and took further training in Radiology at Guy’s Hospital, London (1968-1975). This was followed by a move to Durban, South Africa (1976-1979/80) where he was a consultant and senior lecturer in Radiology. He and his family returned to London in 1980 where he took up a position at Charing Cross Hospital, London. From an online collection of articles Joe states:

Much of my inspiration comes from looking at prints or in galleries of paintings by Constable and Turner. Constable’s studies at Hampstead Heath, Brighton and Salisbury demonstrate so well the changing weather we have in England. In the last few years there have been a number of exhibitions of Turner’s works apart from the permanent collection in the Clore Gallery at Tate Britain.[1]

[1] http://www.wentthedaywell.co.uk/wtdw_articles.html

The work of Joe Boultbee (painter, photographer, and retired doctor) was unknown to me before I started this project. The majority of his paintings are of storms and seascapes. I wanted to ensure that these subjects were addressed in this project.

In the early 2010s I began a series of paintings called Matrix. They were all painted with hotel key cards or expired credit cards. I knew this technique was the one I could use to best express my response to Joe’s work, particularly “Tarifa, Spain”. I used colours from his painting and scraped them across my canvas with a used hotel key card. I was delighted to return to this technique. It is freeing and expressive.

Relationship: I am Joe’s sixth cousin, twice removed.