Early Life and Artistic Training
Born in Sydney, Australia, in 1987, Andy Boot began his formal training in the discipline of graphic design. This early focus on visual communication and structure provided a foundation before he moved toward the fine arts. The shift from the structured logic of design to the more open inquiries of art happened as he relocated to Europe.
In Austria, Boot studied art under Heimo Zobernig. This period of study helped shape his approach to the medium. His time in Europe also included a residency with Kultur Steiermark in Graz, which allowed for a deeper engagement with the local creative environment. He further expanded his perspective through a residency in Norway, moving through different landscapes and studio practices across the continent.
Artistic Practice and Style
Andy Boot’s work occupies the gray area between the physical and the digital. His practice is entangled in the history of painting and modernist legacies, yet it remains acutely aware of the dwindling affect of material form. There is a tension in how he handles objects, moving between being, presenting, and representing. He often works with surfaces that feel both substantial and fleeting, exploring how an image might exist as a digital file or a physical object.
His approach is both conceptual and poetic. He uses materials that suggest a certain lightness or a temporary state, such as shell pasta steeped in watercolour or pigmented gymnastic ribbon set in milky wax. These choices reflect an interest in how things are perceived through a screen versus how they occupy a room. He often looks at the way patterns and planes of reference interact, sometimes using industrial or digital motifs to question the stability of the objects themselves.
Exhibitions and Professional Activity
Boot’s presence in the gallery circuit has been marked by a steady movement between the spaces of Vienna and Berlin. In 2011, his work was part of an exhibition at Croy Nielsen in Berlin. This period of activity continued through several years in Vienna, including a presentation at Croy Nielsen in 2012 and another in 2014. His work also appeared at Layr in 2013, followed by the Smart Sculptures exhibition at the same venue in 2017. More recently, he was included in the New Space Show at Layr in 2022.
The artist has also moved into larger institutional settings. In 2012, he held an exhibition titled Überfläche at the 21er Haus in Vienna. This coincided with a period of international reach, as his work was featured in the Stay in Love exhibition at Lisa Cooley in New York in 2021. These shows reflect a practice that moves between the intimate scale of a studio and the broader, more public environments of established galleries and museums.
- Überfläche (2012)
- Smart Sculptures (2017)
- Stay in Love (2021)
- New Space Show (2022)
Notable Works and Publications
In 2011, Boot released a book titled Backgrounds, Surfaces and Landscapes. His output during this period included Untitled (Nefertiti), a 3D molded digital print featuring a standardized dot-pattern. Other works from this era involve a preoccupation with how materials occupy space, such as Untitled (bacterio) from 2010, which used a miniaturized theatrical backdrop with a Memphis design pattern. There is also Surface (two) from 2010, a laminate characterized by a single circular hole punched through its curved expanse.
The artist's practice often involves the use of unexpected materials to create physical objects. One such piece, the one who remained was M, was created about 2012 and uses shell pasta steeped in watercolor cast onto a surface. These choices reflect a way of working that moves between the digital and the tactile, often focusing on the way patterns and surfaces interact with the objects they cover.
