'The Dollhouse Effect' Final Degree Show 2022

Exhibition Title: The Dollhouse Effect

Exhibition Description: ‘The Dollhouse Effect’ is an exhibition of works created by Kenny Boulton a Neurodivergent Queer artist who chose to explore the act of observation through the eyes of someone with ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder). ADHD effects around 1.5 million people in the United Kingdom with only roughly 120,000 people diagnosed through examinations and assessments.

‘The Dollhouse Effect’ was created as a way to present and express to Neurotypical individuals the unease felt by eye contact along with the constant observations and glares given to those who fall into the Neurodivergent spectrum. The show intends to educate through artwork by turning the space into an exaggerative ‘dollhouse’ using large structures, installations and paintings to act as eyes viewing into the space observing the observer.

The idea was prompted by a job interview gone awry, where Boulton was asked “why don’t you maintain eye contact with me, do I make you uncomfortable?” to which Boulton responds through his artwork and use of colour theory. Boulton continues his staple tradition of colour and emotional evocation in this series of works, the uses of vivid greens and harsh reds to portray the lapses in emotions felt by those affected by ADHD.

Boulton also uses shadows, installations and impromptu art making within this show as a means to reflect the rawness in difficult to describe thoughts, feelings and reactions within people who have ADHD.