ABOUT
Emma Bolland is an interdisciplinary artist and writer currently focussed on sculpture, drawing, installation, and writing. They approach their practice with speculative, sci-fi sensibilities. Drawing on diverse histories such as those of Constructivism, visual practices of Theosophy, and astronomy, they often use materials that also suggest magical and metaphysical properties. Recent activities include a solo project at The Art House and being commissioned by the curator Gill Crawshaw to make work for the exhibition Another Way of Seeing hosted by Leeds Art Gallery. They were the 2025 Testing Ground artist in residence at Yorkshire ArtSpace. They have works and ‘part-works’ in public collections including the V&A Museum Art Library (London), The National Poetry Library (London), Tate Britain Library and Archive (London), Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Huddersfield Art Gallery, the Centre de Livres d’Artistes (France), and in private collections internationally. Their writing is widely published, and they are the first translator of the 1920’s avant-garde film director Louis Delluc’s screenplays into English. Their work is physically and conceptually informed by their physical and mental disabilities, but is never about them. With Rachel Smith they co-edit the interdisciplinary imprint intergraphia. See their News page for upcoming exhibitions and events.
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Recent and Selected Exhibitions, Residencies, Performances, and Events
Colour, Line, and Form (collections display, ongoing), Graves Gallery, Sheffield.
The Tower Dreams the Tower, (performance), The Centre for Poetry and Poetics, University of Sheffield, 2025.
The Public Dream (solo project), Art House UK, Wakefield, 2025.
Another Way of Seeing (group exhibition), curated by Gill Crawshaw and hosted by Leeds City Art Gallery, 2025
Bonecrushers Dream (group show), Council Gallery / Curious Tower, Nottingham, 2025.
Necrology (group show), Haarlem Art Space, 2025.
Checking Out (group exhibition), Hypha Studios, 2025.
Testing Ground (residency), Yorkshire Art Space, 2025.
Salon #1 (with Stu Burke and Gary Simmonds), Studio 46, Sheffield, 2025.
Highlights from Wolverhampton Art Galleriy’s collection of works by women artists (collection display), ArtUK. This curation includes work by Lubaina Himid, Gillian Ayres, Pauline Boty, Angelica Kaufman, and more, 2023
The Expanded Librarian (group exhibition and performance), CRASSH, University of Cambridge, 2023.
Radio Silence (a sound collaboration with Nastassja Simensky, Laroche and Gesa Helms), broadcast as part of Radiophrenia’s The Light at the End of the Dial, 2023.
ImPerfekt, Mewo Kunsthalle, Memmingem, Germany (group exhibition). Other exhibiting artists included Daniele Buetti, Adi Hösle, Nikola Irmer, Annegret Soltau, and Marc Quinn, 2021.
Painted Ladies: 20th century portraiture (group / survey exhibition), Wolverhampton Art Gallery, 2019.
#interrupteur Knowledge Exchange artist-writer in residence for the University of Sheffield’s School of Arts and Humanities, 2019.
Silvery, Silvery, performance readings at Leeds City Gallery. An experimental 'audio guide' commissioned by Gill Crawshaw for her curatorial project which aimed to increase access for blind and visually impaired visitors to Leeds City Art Gallery, 2018.
Sh! ffLight! an art-writing/sound poem score for two voices written and performed in collaboration with Helen Clarke, part of Writing Photographs at Tate Modern, 2018.
Taking Ideas for a Walk (group exhibition), curated by Graham Domke in association with Dundee University, Hostpitalfield, Scotland, 2018.
INT/EXT (solo exhibition), Wild Pansy Project Space, University of Leeds, 2016.
The Is of the Thing (Lectophobia Mix), screening and performance reading, Artists’ Book Market, Baltic, Gateshead, 2015.
Library Interventions artist-in-residence, Leeds College of Art and Design, 2015.
Micromegas Vagabond Flux (group exhibition), Gallerie Université de Lille 3, Lille, France. Micromegas Vagabond Flux was conceived, commissioned and curated by Tracy Mackenna and Edwin Jannsen. Other artists included Laure Prouvost, Jonn Herschend, Stefanos Pavlakis & Tobias Kauer, Mick Peter, and Bik Van der Pol, 2015.
The Is of the Thing (performance and film screening), part of Shady Dealings with Language curated by Roy Claire Potter and David Berridge, Matt’s Gallery, London, 2014.
MilkyWayYouWillHearMeCall (collaborative exhibition with Judit Bodor and Tom Rodgers), Wild Pansy Project Space, University of Leeds, 2012
The Great Purpose (group exhibition), Mile End Park Arts Pavilion, London, 2007
Wildwood (group exhibition) with Laura Ford, Racheal Goodyear, Diane Howse, Kelly McCallum, Sophie Lascelles, Heather and Ivan Morison, and Rebecca Birch), PSL, Leeds, 2007.
Rose and Heather (solo exhibition) at Leeds City Art Gallery, 2006.
Multiples und Editionen (group exhibition), Con/temporary gallery, Berlin Residencies, 2006.
For the North (group exhibition) Generator Projects, Dundee.
Crimescene (solo exhibition), The Window, Birmingham.
Lightboat, Culture Company public art commission for Holbeck and the Leeds & Liverpool Canal.
Situation News (a collaborative intervention with John Wakeman for Situation Leeds, a festival of art in the public realm), 2005. Situation News is cited and pictured in Gabriel N. Gee, Art in the North of England 1979–2009, London: Routledge, 2017.
Sylvia Sylvia (where are you buried?), (solo show) ESA, 2004.
artranspennine, (trans-regional survey exhibition), 2003.
The Grammar of Display (group exhibition) Huddersfield Art Gallery, 2002.
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, (solo exhibition), Wolverhampton Art Gallery, 1988.
Angels and Fishwives (two-person exhibition with Michelle Leon), Huddersfield Art Gallery, 1987.