Collaboration as a path to sustainability
Some artists work independently, and others in groups. Neither approach is right or wrong and both can be generative in producing strong creative output. Of course, some artists love the isolation of solo studio practice yet being isolated can also throw up its challenges. In probing this topic, I’m pleased to interview Richard Boulet and Marilyn Olson, artists and co-facilitators at the Textile Arts Open Studio, a Peer Connections program at the Canadian Mental Health Association Edmonton.
Dick Averns: How does collaboration help create a sustainable practice for you and your collaborators?
Marilyn Olson: I think the collaboration allows us to trade expertise, it’s complementary, Richard is a great teacher, and until I met Richard I hadn’t considered myself an artist.
Richard Boulet: It keeps my own creative instincts fresh, I don’t have to rely on my own methodology and can react to other’s unique contributions. As far as community goes I feel I have an opportunity to give back and feel that I genuinely find benefits for my mental health by belonging to the group, both creative and social. Our group facilitates mental wellness and/or personal recovery on a drop-in basis. Week-after-week attendance is not necessary, which also helps activities evolve.
DA: What sort of benefits have you noticed since you started working collaboratively, and conversely, what sort of drawbacks are there?
MO: Advantages are fresh ideas, somebody to bounce ideas off. Disadvantages can be with communication and being very careful to avoid overlap. Richard and I also meet once a week outside the group to work on our personal collaboration and look at the pieces and discuss changes. We met through the Textile Arts Open Studio after I heard about it from my doctor and have now been working as a pair for six-nine months.
RB: It’s a learning curve for both of us. We have our first collaborative exhibition at the University of Alberta Hospital’s McMullen Gallery in spring 2020. This will help sustain our practice as there will be CARFAC fees.
MO: A lot of firsts for both of us and we need to recognize that, for instance it’s my first gallery exhibition.
RB: ...And it’s a first for me in supporting Marilyn as a newer artist. I’ve exhibited widely including at the Textile Museum of Canada and most recently the 2017 solo show you [Dick] curated, R A G E – H O P E at Nickle Galleries. We’re starting to talk down the road from the McMullen show; it’s exciting to talk more about what could happen next.
DA: I’m interested in how working with trained artists and self-taught artists is of value?
MO: My background is really in garment construction and I think a big part of being self-taught is that I don’t have to conform to the art box: I’m bringing in fresh ideas and Richard is helping me fulfll those ideas and how we accomplish them.
RB: I feel I’m learning as much from Marilyn as she’s learning from me. Y’know Dick, Marilyn is the right kind of person that has the right kind of skill and ethics for this time in my career, but we need to think long term and take it one step at a time.
DA: But in terms of broader collaborations that are linked to the Textile Open Arts Studio, how does this factor?
RB: With the Studio a number of us have lived experience with mental illness, so we bring a shared value for sustaining wellness. Marilyn and I are group leaders and co-facilitators for the Studio and Peer Connections Program at CMHA Edmonton, from which there’s value in fostering a safe mental health space. And of course the art! People can express their interests in textiles in a traditional or artistic fashion. We share group knowledge. Everyone is valued as a source of experience.
The values articulated in this interview, particularly community support and collaboration, are clearly contributing to success for these artists. What stands out for me, as interviewer and an artist who has undertaken many projects broaching wellness and the arts –including public art, social practice, writing and curating— is that Richard and Marilyn have a healthy process as a foundation for making their art.
To sustain one’s practice requires the ability to flourish as a person. Dr Corey Keyes notes that flourishing can be fostered in individuals by “learning, playing, interacting, connecting and helping.” You will note that Richard and Marilyn do all these things. “By engaging in these factors on a regular basis, you can increase positive mental health, despite the presence or absence of mental illness.”
- Dick Averns is an artist, writer and Engagement Coordinator at CARFAC Alberta.