Eric Michael Boyd

Eric Boyd

Eric Boyd passed away in the early morning hours of the Summer Solstice, on June 21, 2023.

Eric was a loving family member, devoted husband, and was affectionately known by his friends and family as a Renaissance Man.  He was an accomplished fine art photographer, a glass artist, a gourmet cook, ballet dancer, mountain back packer, a serious Oenophile (along with a penchant for collecting the appropriate wine glass for the appropriate varietal), and a reluctant raconteur when of the mind to share tales of his storied past.

Eric was born in Hermosa Beach, California in 1947 to Helen Hodgeman Boyd and Stanley Fullwood Boyd. He learned sign language from his maternal grandmother, Nellie Hodgeman, who lived with his family He attended Mira Costa High School in Manhattan Beach, California - competing and winning medals on the Mustang varsity track team. Eric wanted to be an architect, and studied architecture at Cal Poly University in San Luis Obispo, California - but changed his degree to City and Regional Planning and graduated in 1971. Eric began his career as a City Planner with a job in Rabat, Morocco in the Peace Corps, where he and his wife Sue Boyd lived in the historic Kasbah in Rabat, a 12th-century royal fort overlooking the ocean. In 1972 Eric and Sue returned to California, where Eric worked for the next several years as a City and Regional Planner for the California cities of Woodlake, Visalia, Capitola and San Luis Obispo. From 1975-1981 Eric worked at MDW Associates in San Luis Obispo, California, where he was a Vice President of Urban Planning. During this time, Eric also performed as a ballet dancer with a small dance company in San Luis Obispo, and spent many summer days backpacking in the Sierra Mountains with his group of friends, known as "The Mountain Men".  Eric loved the Sierra mountains, and would return many times over his lifetime to hike and camp in the wild. In 1982 Eric divorced and moved to Berkeley, California where he studied at CCAC, the California College of Arts and Crafts, and then began his career as a photographer and glass artist. Eric worked as a studio photographer in San Francisco, and also helped develop and build the stained glass windows for a Buddhist monastery in Northern California. In 1983 Eric remarried in Ashland, Oregon to Cynthia Wands and they later moved to Los Angeles. Eric worked as a project manager at Custom Glass and Mirror, where he oversaw large custom stained glass installations. He then worked as an Architectural and Studio photographer for architects and interior designers.  In 1992 he began studying Computer Graphics at UCLA, and in 1994 he was hired by the Los Angeles Times as an Imaging Specialist and Food Photographer. Eric greatly valued and esteemed the team and photographers he worked with at the Los Angeles Times, and always spoke of the high regard he had for that newspaper during that era. In 2008 he left the LA Times and then began work with the ARL Library at the Walt Disney Animation Studios, where he free lanced with their research team for the next 13 years. Eric loved working with his Disney Family, and spoke of his time with them as "the best job of my life". In 2010 Eric started an art glass business, The Glass Artifact, where he created fine art glass objects, ornaments and jewelry. Eric would organize a yearly "Hope Sale" where he sold his glass works and donated a portion to the City of Hope Hospital.

Eric is survived by his loving wife of 39 years, Cynthia Wands and was predeceased by his parents, Stanley and Helen Boyd, and also his sister, Barbara Boyd. He is survived by his brother, Alan Boyd of Fairfield, Connecticut, (Margaret), and their children, Deanna and Kerry. Other survivors include his niece Cheryl Jacobs and her husband David Jacobs, and also his niece Colleen Phillips. Additional family includes his nephews Tom Jurekovic (Marcia), Jim Jurekovic (Char), Steve Jurekovic (Laurie), Dan Jurekovic (Sherry); his great niece Ashley Oriz (Vince) and their two children Vivien and Dominic; and several great nieces and nephews that include Amy Dowell, Micah Jurekovic, Terry Jurekovic, MacKenzie Jurekovic and Sam Jurekovic. His Wands family survivors include his sister-in-law Susan Wands (Robert Petkoff), brother-in law Alan Curtis Wands-Bourdoiseau (Julie), sister-in-law Kathy Meredith (Kent), sister-in law Barbara Pierce (Jeff), and brother-in-law Richard Gray (Miranda). His is survived by his nephew Greg Wands-Bourdoiseau, and nieces Jeanne Wands-Bourdiseau and Claire Wands-Bourdoiseau. Eric was a cancer warrior, who battled Multiple Myeloma, a blood cancer, for over 16 years. He courageously underwent chemotherapy, clinical trials and stem cell transplants as he fought to live a life that allowed him to travel, work and find the natural beauty in this world. Eric leaves behind a tribe of loving friends, fellow artists, comrades in the vocations of art and commerce, and brilliant doctors who helped Eric outrun the reaches of cancer for many years. Special thanks to Dr. Ashkan Lashkari, who guided Eric through years of successful treatment, Dr. Narsis Moshfeghi who helped manage his well being, and Janet Orloff, who helped his spirit stay the course. Of special assistance to the family was the hospice nurse assistance of Tiffany Wands Gannan, who guided his care in his final hours. The world has been gifted with the light and art of Eric's handiwork, and now he has transformed into the unseen. Thank you Eric for your art and love and presence in our lives.