Dogs are symbols of friendship and loyalty in the twenty sculptures comprising Bodén’s The Pack (2021-22). Situated between the manicured lawn of the Held studio complex and the overgrowth beyond, they are peaceful conduits between environments that humans have cultivated and those that run wild. In Lapland, Sweden, where Bodén was raised, dogs serve as work animals assisting with hunting, sledding, and ski competitions. In this series, however, the artist lovingly imbues each face in the pack with an anthropomorphic personality accentuated through multi-colored glazes. Sixteen are named after the only women awarded a Nobel Prize in literature. The three peeking out, hollow-eyed and ashen but benign, from a cluster of rocks, are “unpublished.

Press release from River Valley Arts Collective

"On the Grounds 2022" Image credit: Chris Kendall

IRJA BODÉN

IRJA BODÉN