Exhibition showcases a series of paintings made by two artists working in collaboration
Being a visual artist is mostly a solitary occupation, creating artworks alone in a studio, but two Yorkshire artists have discovered an alternative way of working. In addition to their own individual creative practices, Mel Davies and Kim Coley have for the past three years been making paintings together and this month their second joint exhibition as collaborators is running at Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley.
Davies, who has a studio at the mill and Coley, who is based in Kirby Overblow near Wetherby, have been meeting regularly for painting sessions where they work contemporaneously on one canvas. Looking at their individual work you can see overlaps in subject matter and inspiration – both are inspired by the natural world, for example – and this, alongside a decades-long friendship, means that their interests and approaches align well. They have also found that in practical terms their style of working, and strengths in certain areas, complement each other.
“Mel is very colour sensitive so he will usually choose the palette, whereas I am more preoccupied with shape, so more often than not it is me who comes up with the initial structure of the painting,” says Coley. “Then we just start. Mel will make a mark, then I make a mark. It is a discourse. It’s a bit like when you have a lovely conversation with someone, batting ideas backwards and forwards.” Davies adds: “I am a big fan of Kim’s work – I love what she does and her style. Collaborating in this way wouldn’t necessarily work for everyone but we have known each other a long time and we respect each other as people and artists. We bring the best part of 100 years of life experience and skills to the canvas. It is a lovely way of working.”
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The first exhibition of work they had made collaboratively, Joint and Several, was shown at Sunny Bank Mills last year and it was such a success that they decided to put together the current show The Rolling Year. “This time we decided to choose An overarching theme that we would work to from the outset,” says Davies. “And that was really helpful. We rarely deviated from it.” As the title suggests, the works reflect the months of the year and the passing of the seasons and feature a range of vibrantly coloured, uplifting abstract paintings including landscapes, still lives and studies; among the subjects are Kirkgate Market, Wharfedale, vases and wildflower meadows.
The time it takes for Davies and Coley to make a painting together varies, but generally once they have discussed their thoughts and ideas and settled on a subject, they can create a painting in a day. “We might then come back to it and refine it but the beauty of working quickly is that it is so spontaneous,” says Coley. “You can overwork things sometimes and this does feel quite liberating.”
The initial idea to collaborate came from Coley who had come across the theories of American philosopher and sociologist Richard Sennett while she was studying for a PGCE. “One of my tutors introduced me to Sennett’s book Together which was about how important human co-operation is to our existence and how in order to feel human, we need to make things,” she says. “I really engaged with his theories and tried out one of the exercises with students in a life drawing class I taught. I would ask them to draw on a piece of paper for five minutes and then move around, so each person was adding to another’s drawing. It encourages visual dialogue because you are responding to other people’s marks. I could see that people were braver, more fluid and expressive. They became less self-conscious. So I suggested to Mel that we try it – we had a few minor disagreements to begin with, but then it started to work.” And they haven’t looked back.
Both artists say that they have found the collaboration has enriched their own individual work too. “I go back to my studio inspired,” says Coley. “I’ve learnt a lot from Mel and my confidence has increased. My work has always been very rooted in close observation of what is around me and Mel has encouraged me to use my memory and imagination more.” Davies adds: “One of the nice things about working like this is that sometimes what we create is a kind of surprise. When the paintings came back from the framers for this exhibition, it was really amazing to see what we had achieved together.”
Mel Davies and Kim Coley: The Rolling Year is at The Spinning Mill Loft, Sunny Bank Mills, Farsley, Leeds until September 27. 10am-4pm, closed Mondays.