After spending four years abroad at the Florence Academy of Art, Cassidy Boyuk found her voice as an artist to be in direct contrast to the work of many old masters.
As the birthplace of the Renaissance, Florence is overflowing with artistry, yet Boyuk quickly noticed a common theme.
“Seeing how historically male-dominated classical training is, it was really important to me to take some of that technique that I learned and apply it to paintings that center a female perspective,” she says.
A specialist in portraiture and still-life, Boyuk is grateful to have been born in an age in which women have access to artistic training. By centralizing women in her work, Boyuk hopes to convey the perspectives history has ignored for centuries.
“I feel very called to portray women from a female perspective, to really show them as more than just something pretty to look at, the way the old masters do, but as people with real complexity and layers,” she says. “There’s a lot to explore there.”
Boyuk has continued to explore the female experience since returning to her hometown of Hilliard in 2021. One of her most recent projects involves reexamining popular Greek myths through a feminist lens.
By focusing on the viewpoint of the female mythological figures instead of the popular narrative, Boyuk calls for her viewers to see humanity within them. Boyuk feels especially passionate about the topic of bodily autonomy in her most recent work, which features the transformation of Daphne, a naiad who was turned into a laurel tree after spurning the advances of Apollo.
“I wanted to talk about the self-determination and the agency of Daphne and the choice to change out of the form of a woman because she doesn’t feel safe in a woman’s body anymore,” Boyuk says.
Each of the portraits in Boyuk’s mythology series began as a portrait of one of her friends, she says.
“I have really amazing and inspiring women in my life who I love to collaborate with on these things because they always bring a different perspective, and their own self-expression is important to capture,” says Boyuk.
Boyuk appreciates the close network of female artists she’s found in Columbus.
“Seeing them succeed makes me want to keep going,” Boyuk says. “Community is really instrumental to what I do.”
Maggie Lardie is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
