Sonia Boyce: Feeling Her Way
Caoimhe Mallon reviews Sonia Boyce’s Feeling Her Way at Leeds Art Gallery and the way the artists explore their identity and voice.
Sonia Boyce’s immersive exhibition Feeling Her Way at Leeds Art Gallery centres on five Black female musicians collaborating to create a harmonious unity strung together through improvised notes and experimental sounds. Commissioned by the British Council, Boyce was awarded the Golden Lion for Best National Participation for the exhibition. Spanning three rooms, the exhibition explores the meaning of the titular subject as it becomes literal. Not only do we, as spectators, feel our way through the sounds of animal noises and abstract sounds. But Boyce’s intentional focus on the intuitive and spontaneous allows for an exciting experience for both collaborators and art lovers alike.
The first room is an archive documenting the cultural contribution Black female creatives have on international music culture. This is celebrated through a display of records Boyce exhibits on the walls – all created by Black female creatives. There is an evocative feel to the exhibition as Boyce designs retro wallpaper, prevalent in her other displays, connecting past and present whilst adding to the colourful eccentricities of the senses brought to life in the trio of rooms. Boyce also adds glittering gold details across her rooms, resembling Pyrite or the Colonial term, Fool’s Gold. With this distinctive feature, Boyce correlates the undervalued substance to that of the contributions made by women. Instead of cheapening the material, Boyce celebrates its beauty and uniqueness.
Boyce focuses her exhibition on the musicians Jacqui Dankworth, Poppy Ajudha, Sofia Jernberg, Tanita Tikaram. Composer Errollyn Wallen can be heard guiding the musicians and visitors throughout all the rooms. Through their blend of collaborative music, they create a meticulous sound. Sometimes in harmony. Sometimes clashing. The observer is taken on an exciting and emotional journey. The music was pre-recorded in Abbey Road studios – popularised by the Beatles. The setting highlights the national significance of the exhibition and creates more history in the heart of British music. This is also where the singers meet for the first time, further building the spontaneity and playful risk the artists jump into.
In the second room, Boyce invites the audience to sit on the pyrite geometric stools as we soak up the creative bonding between artists. Feeling embraced by the show, the viewer becomes almost hypnotised by the vibrancies of music and kaleidoscopic visions. The playful energies and the breaking down of emotional barriers become more apparent to the viewer who delves deeper into the exhibition. In turn, we delve deeper into the artist’s vulnerability. The musicians become more trusting and familiar with their respective collaborators, clearly shown through the increasingly experimental and slick conjoining of voices, creating a lively symphony.
In her interview with the British Council, Boyce goes into detail on what she wants her audience to take away from the experience:
‘My desire in bringing you together is to explore how you might feel free. What kind of conditions might you need to feel free to express yourself, when not constricted by what others feel you should be or could be?’
Sonia Boyce
It is apparent here that Boyce invites her viewers to truly listen to others, in this case, the performance of singers and how paying special attention to each other can create a new realm of possibilities and to progress the conversation in the way we, as humans, treat each other and our respective work.
Feeling Her Way is a visually and audibly stunning experience. The exhibition is open until November 5th at Leeds Art Gallery.
