South West artists Lynne Mitchell and Denise Gillies have collaborated together to bring an exhibition to ArtGeo with three parts.
The former print makers each have some individual works in the exhibition along with pieces they have created together.
The pair were both members of the South West Print Makers and worked with each other for the last six years, but it was in the last 12 months when they started to work collaboratively.
Ms Gillies said when Ms Mitchell started to put things in exhibitions people would tell her, I see you have another piece in, I would say that is not mine.
“People would say the same thing to Lynne,” she said.
“Although we had worked independently and had not seen each others work there was a parallel which threw us together.”
They decided to do a joint exhibition and had certain ideas about how that would work together, with one person working on one piece and the other working on another piece and swapping over.
Ms Gillies said it did not work.
“We actually found if we stood side-by-side in the studio and worked full on together everything got worked by us both at the same time,” Ms Mitchell said.
“That is how our collaboration works.”
Ms Gillies said often they have an idea of what they will create, but at the end, the artwork will be completely different because they have not liked it.
Ms Mitchell said because they stood side-by-side and worked on it at the same time those decisions were made instantly.
“When one does not like something – or likes something and has an idea – we just go for it,” she said.
“We can both be fairly honest with one another – even with our own works – we can say there is something wrong with that,” Ms Gillies said.
“Because we are friends and the other person knows we are not being hurtful or jealous or stealing anyone’s thunder, neither of us have a big ego about our work.”
Ms Mitchell said the biggest thing was stopping the other person from tearing something up because it looked alright.
The theme of the exhibition at ArtGeo is Ground Matters, which includes abstract and semi-abstract works with elements of realism in some pieces.