What made you want to make collaborative art together?
We have been together for 50 years. We always worked together in our previous human services work, so when we had the opportunity to make art full time, it was only natural that we would choose to do it together.
How do you work together to make a cohesive and balanced piece?
It varies from series to series. We think very similarly when we decide to start a new project. We each have strengths and abilities that are complementary. Deb always has a vision and is an excellent colorist. Allen has very good technical skills and is able to see things through to their completion. Together we make a decent artist
With the level of abstraction in your artwork, do the two of you ever have different interpretations of the meaning behind the art?
Our art doesn’t have meaning behind it. We set out to make something that we’ve never seen and that represents our idea of beauty. Due to the nature of our interests and choices however, ideas such as the value and beauty found in skilled craft and trades, the elegance of simplicity in everyday objects, as well as history, ecology, and consumerism can be found in our work.
What about Architecture entices you?
4- We are architecture “groupies”. We live in an IM Pei building, we are constantly looking at architecture and reading about architects, so it was only natural that our art would reflect that. Also, we live up high in a brick city and are seeing rooftops, street grids, brick patterns and buildings being built every day.
What is your artistic process like when crafting a piece?
Our artistic process varies from series to series. Sometimes we work side by side, making dozens of decisions together in the completion of a single piece. Sometimes one of us will take the lead in developing a prototype which we then modify and use to complete the series. We like to work in series and on paper, working on the series to its natural completion of design and color. Oftentimes the completion of a series will trigger new work based on something we liked or learned.
What have you found inspiring recently?
The pandemic has changed our approach to making art in many ways. One thing that influenced us is our instant use of delivery services. We’ve been kind of shocked by the proliferation of cardboard boxes and have thought about all the design, construction, handling and recycling or destruction of boxes. We are collecting empty boxes of all sorts and have begun using them in our art. A series called “dieline” has started. It involves the deconstruction of boxes and painting, gilding and combining them to give value to something we usually destroy without thought.
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