Two fantastically productive, inspirational, and enjoyable days with Elena Thomas here at the studios. We really got into our stride on day two – making something that existed between our individual practices. Day one was more mapping and testing … seeing where things overlapped, where they corresponded, where they were in dialogue, where they retained their distinctions. The occasions where distinctions persisted were (of course) of less interest to us – the point of Elena’s micro-residency was to play with correspondency.
It was great to have the more neutral space of the project room rather than being in my studio. Now I wonder what it would be like to apply for a residency elsewhere with Elena … somewhere neither of us is familiar with – that’s another idea for another day!
The exchanges were very material – starting almost modestly and developing (by the end of day two) in to something that occupied all available space. The first table top installation was something that was looked at – literally looked down on. The final installation was something that invited … required … demanded … to be walked through, it was something that was impossible to comprehend from a static position.
We had multiples of materials: ties, wrapped twigs, curtain clips, shirt pockets, lengths of string. Collections of small things rather than larger singular things. We are both collectors, so this combined with the practicalities perhaps contributed to the aesthetic more than any conceptual imperative.
Over the time we withdrew* colour resulting in an unexpectedly monochrome palette. Black and white – the palette of correspondence … black** ink on white paper. Perhaps is we had continued colour would have re-emerged. Both Elena and I are working with ready-made colour materials – secondhand garments and textiles. Was the stripping out of colour a way to focus on form?
Our time together in the project room became quieter – fewer verbal notes and queries were exchanged. The ’reading bonnet’ incident being the notable exception – reducing us both to uncontrollable laughter. That said there was / is (for me at least) also something very poignant about this particular object – its performativity and its image.
For me it was great to work materially … for the physical materials to determine the outcomes. It’s far too easy for me to get caught up in overthinking and over determining conceptual and contextual aspects. It reminded me that some of my best work has come from playing with materials. Materiality is enough!
I think that it would have been tough to have had longer in the project room. After two good intense days it felt necessary to let those things rest … to give ourselves time to digest. If Elena had been here for longer it probably would have been good for us to take a day or two to do our own thing before continuing together. It’s useful to reflect on this in case we do a longer residency together. As it was we continued to do things together, it was just that they were other things – we went to the first day of Örebro’s Open Art biennale, and the next day we saw an exhibition in Stockholm. It would have been very interesting to return to the project room after these shared experiences of other artists’ works.
Whilst travelling we talked constantly – not so much about what we had done, not directly in any case … more tangentially about other ideas, projects and experiences. Having time with other artists is so important to me – it’s one of the reasons that I choose to be in a studio association. The conversations can be so brilliantly thought provoking.
I am incredibly grateful that Elena took the initiative for this micro-residency and made it happen.
I have lots of questions about what happens now / next … what shape might our Correspondence project take. I guess that the answers to these questions will evolve through our on going discussions.
Thank you so much Elena!
- Things of interest / points of excitement:
Working / making together
Inviting in other artists
Exhibition / event
Timescale
- Things that have stuck:
Turning pockets inside out
Binding / wrapping
Reading bonnet
(guide)lines
Multiples
*’withdrew’ in this instance seems a pertinent opposite to ’drew with’
** the Swedish word for ink is ’bläck’
ps. it is so fitting to be writing this here – this after all is where we met all those years ago – in a-n’s blog community.
