Julie Voyce

I love to paint, make toys, draw, put together decorations, assemble small books, print, make occasional pieces of jewelry and embroider. I got to build sculptures, collaborate, try animation, design, do mail art and peddle off DIY trinkets at public events. Billions of small things can be absorbed in the course of a brief errand. Over time, a lot of different methods are required just to dig some of them up. 

AGO: What was the inspiration for this artwork or series?
Voyce: These Teddies began when holdable gifts were needed. 

AGO: Tell us about a place or a space where you most love making your work?
Voyce: I enjoy working on the VIA train. It can involve drawing, embroidery or recording the scenery. It has always involved a picnic with coffee from the cart. 

AGO: Are you in dialogue with any other artists or creative peers about your practice? If so, how does this dialogue feed your work?
Voyce: People who think outside the box keep me on my toes. Their honest reactions form a bridge between studio mind sanctuary and public forums. Brainstorming sessions can start with a great pair of shoes.

I attended the Ontario College of Art: pre-degree with four years of nothing but studio. Graduated in 1980. My work has spent time in various publications, an exhibition truck, shop windows, Union Station, a Trash Palace, a vending machine, galleries and a tree in Grange Park. 

It has been shown in Toronto since 1979. The work has travelled across Canada. It has visited the States, the UK, Italy, Australia, Korea, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Japan and Russia. It lives in public collections, in private collections and in an Acker box. 

Voyce represented by General Hardware Contemporary in Toronto.