After doing #fadd21 I went on to do a collaborative project with Blend Creates this was a pARTnership. For this project, you were given a partner to collaborate with. I am also part of local art collective called GOSSIP Collective and have been attending some of their online lectures. One called Tranquillity. This to focus on more positive things during this difficult time of Covid. A poem was read called 'The Guesthouse' by Rumi. This poem talks about an unwelcome guest and the fact that you should embrace the whole experience and the negative elements of it as you can learn from it. This really struck me and I shared it with my Blend Creates partner. It was the starting point of our collaboration and the theme of connection through this time was what we worked on. I suggested we do a sketchbook swap and we did five pages then sent them off to each other.
These five pages are from my sketchbook. The pages on the right are my drawings. The first one is to do with human connection, our connections with family, friends and partners. My partner responded with a collaged mixed media image of Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam. I then made an abstract tree with collaged words relating to humanity being connected, that we are rooted together as one family and my partner created a collage with leaves. I then created an abstract composition relating again to us humans and how we are all connected. My partner created an image of where she stays in Dundee and her connation to that. The next image is representative of the earth and how it has been torn apart by the global pandemic. It says on it ‘the fabric of our lives has been torn apart and my partner created a page of fabric that is sewn together. The last page is a drawing of myself and Rosie my partner on a map. Her on Dundee and me in Falkirk and the words are related to the fact that creativity has connected us and the response was how we also connect over a cup of coffee.
This is my partner’s sketchbook. On the first page my partner created a page with a house and when Covid arrives at your door. I responded by creating a dirty trail behind the person. The page on the right of the next page is my partners and it’s about being screen fatigues due to all the digital connections we are having to do. I added a network piece on the left. The next set of images are houses and relate to how we are all stuck at home separate from each other to protect each other. The next two pages are a combination of both our work together. My partner did the tree and I did a collage sky and this related to life and the things we are looking forward to. The last image on the right page is my partners. She is expecting a baby and is saying “making love connections with someone I haven’ met yet.” I then created a ball of wool on the left page and referred to a beautiful Psalm that talks about being knit together in your mother’s womb.
I really enjoyed getting to know my partner and creating images to send to each other to respond to. It was a great experience.