Vivienne Bogan was born in Limerick in 1951. She studied at the Limerick School of Art and Design and at the Vrije Academie in Amsterdam. The evolution of her corpus reflects the continuous state of transformation her daily life and routine. As the artist herself explains: ‘I see what I do as a personal journey of self-exploration and discovery – the vehicle that assists me to glean a deeper insight and understanding of myself, as a spiritual and physical being and of the world and my place in it’.
This appetite for mutation explains why the artist has preferred improvised methods of conception – illustrated by her regular use of found objects and materials – that take the counterpoint to traditional academic techniques. Among the plethora of materials the artist experiments with, paper holds a particular place: ‘for its variety and versatility as a surface to create on but also for how it can in itself inspire and stimulate – whether it is the paper I make myself and its 3D, highly textured qualities or the unconventional ways of using the manufactured sheets such as “pinning” embossing, etc.’.
In terms of process, Bogan prefers to work on several works, series and mediums concurrently. Through the simultaneous exploration of different themes, the artist manages to nurture diversity while blending subjects into implicit common threads, such as flight as a form of freedom. The female figure as a maternal ‘carrier’ is a more recent focus of Bogan’s corpus.
Bogan lives and works in Feakle, Co. Clare.
