The Art of Working (Internationally): Ryan Boultbee

Ryan Boultbee (film still). Shot by Underhill Creative.

Doing [international] residencies enabled me to step out of what I knew, and you can take more risks. Going away, you realise what you have back home. This network of artists; galleries; spaces… all stuff you take for granted… It’s good to remind you of what you’ve got. When I came back from the residencies in 2019, I knew I wanted to reinforce my network and find a way of sharing all the knowledge that I’d gained. - Ryan Boultbee

We are pleased to share the third film in this series commissioned in partnership with Eurodesk UK as part of Eurodesk’s Time to Move 2020 campaign. The Art of Working (Internationally) is a series of short documentary films featuring interviews and work from three UK artists. The interviews focus on the influence and impact of having international experiences either through festivals, exhibitions, performances or residencies.

Ryan Boultbee is a visual artist who asks us to look again at the spaces and places we occupy. His current work sits between art and architecture; it adds to, takes from and alters everyday spaces. He hopes his artwork will make the viewer more aware of the structures they live in - and how easily they can be re-built and re-imagined. Ryan co-runs No Jobs in the Arts: a platform to support emerging visual artists and creatives in the East Midlands. The project is kindly supported by National Lottery funding through Arts Council England.

Ryan was one of the artists that UKNA took to Shanghai for Artshake 2019 with Yiyuan Tang Museum and Seojung Art Centre, Seoul - what an adventure that was! Hear more about Ryan's search for hidden treasures in the sprawling abandoned factory site in China, as well as Ryan's creative process and practice.

Enabling artists to share their work internationally and immerse themselves in cross-cultural creative practice is a cornerstone of UKNA's work. Our international projects put artists’ voices on the global stage. We create opportunities to share art and performance with international audiences, and for artists to collaborate across borders and cultures. Often, these opportunities are artists’ first experience of working and showing internationally. As the UK creates a new identity and position on the world stage, the arts play an important role in shaping that identity. Find out more about our international projects here.

This project is kindly funded by Eurodesk UK. Find out how you could learn, work and volunteer across Europe with Eurodesk UK.

The Art of Working (Internationally) films have been created by Underhill Creative. All social distancing guidelines in place at the time have been adhered to.