Julie McIntyre: Travel Stories

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Julie McIntyre, "Nautical Quilt (detail)," nd

lithography, assorted papers & thread. Photo by Ted Clarke

Vancouver print and fibre artist Julie McIntyre incorporates a variety of domestic objects as the ground for a series of work that captures the complexities of one woman’s life journey. During the 1960s and 70s McIntyre’s grandmother, Lucy Mood McLeod McIntyre (1906 -2005), traveled the world on cargo ships, snapping hundreds of photos along the way. McIntyre mined a rich inheritance of exquisite slides to create a non-linear record of her grandmother’s search for adventure outside of the confines of an ‘ordinary’ life.

The series consists of eight wearable hand-printed paper aprons, eight paper quilts and eight original artist books bound as handbags. All are arranged in groups according to these travel themes: Nautical, Guards, Gardens, Family, Sacred Structures, Sightseers, Shopkeepers, and Street Scenes.

The exhibition includes a catalogue with an introduction by BAG Director/Curator Ellen van Eijnsbergen and an essay by the artist which further explains her inspiration to explore hand craft and the use of domestic objects such as aprons, quilts and handbags.

“The form of aprons was chosen as the most recognizable domestic icon, symbolizing not only a traditional version of motherhood, but the “apron strings” of social anxieties and expectations placed upon mothers and children. The quilts I have created reference the tidy, stacked compartments where precious things are stored, and act as a metaphor for my grandmother’s restrained and secret life. Only when she travelled, did she seem to be free,” writes McIntyre.

ABOUT THE ARTISTJulie McIntyre studied at The Banff Centre, AB in 1986 and received her BFA from Queen’s University, ON with a major in printmaking. Her prints and fibre work have been featured in solo exhibitions in public galleries across Canada and she has participated in over 40 juried exhibitions, half of which were international. McIntyre has served as President of CARFAC BC, and as BC Representative and Treasurer of CARFAC. She has taught workshops throughout Canada and has been an artist in residence with the Vancouver School Board and an instructor with ArtStarts in Schools for over a decade. From January until June 2018, McIntyre will be an artist in residence for Queen Alexandra Elementary exclusively. In 2014, she received the City of Vancouver Mayor's Award for Arts Board Member of the Year. McIntyre lives and works in Vancouver.