On Collaboration
Images fr. collaborations with (clockwise from top L) April Mai, Michelle Chan, Elizabeth Howard, and Alexis Borth
The idea of working with other artists seems natural to me because I started out in the collaborative arts: theater, then later, filmmaking. Balancing my artistic intentions with those of cinematographers, designers, performers, and even clients, challenged me to sharpen my skills and learn new ones. In those pursuits, productivity depends on smooth and sturdy co-work — but they also contain traditional roles one steps into without having to define expectations, boundaries, goals or failure.
Now, as a photographic artist, I can work almost completely alone all the time, but I still long for collaboration, because I like people. Fortunately, last year, I was admitted to a local program called, Artist Inc., run by the Mid-America Arts Alliance, a regional artist-support organization situated here in Kansas City. They advertise that you’ll learn about building a sustainable art practice, but the best part for me has been networking with a group of over 25 artists who practice all different disciplines. We even had food and cosmetic artists! I found I had more in common with all of them than I imagined, and the fellowship has led to several friendships and, to date, 3 collaborations.
Collaborating with a painter, a poet, a garment-maker and a choreographer (the only one not resulting from Artist, Inc.) has presented more and different challenges than I imagined, but the stretching has been great for my practice, in the following ways:
The assumptions I have about collaborating have nearly all been challenged. We had to make our own rules. It can be awkward to do, but talking about how things will work helps define success and failure, as well as creating a mutually understood work path from which we can more comfortably deviate as necessity dictates. My collaborations have so far resulted in 3 print exhibitions, inspired a live dance concert, and my first photo book.
Only two of the collaborations have required me to temper or adjust what I do in the making part of my job, but they’ve all challenged me to think more clearly and act more in concert with my partner when it comes to the marketing part. There’s an idealistic view of art that it should be done without concern for what others might think, and that works great when I’m making. But once I’ve finished something and I’d like to share it, then it helps to know how to describe what I’m doing and where that conversation needs to happen. When working with a partner, especially one in another discipline, we need to work together to develop suitable and equally appropriate language, as well as consideration of venues and audiences.
The joy of sharing the work with someone with whom you have an affinity is worth almost any amount of awkwardness at the beginning. I imagine it’s important to choose one’s collaborators carefully, but I’ve been lucky so far — all my collabs have been fun and interesting, without excessive stress. Pairing with people who don’t share my work ethic or my vision of what art is, people with whom I can’t agree on roles, steps, a definition of success, well, that would be more trouble than it’s worth.
On my site, you can see some of the work with my collaborators, Michelle Chan and Alexis Borth. My work with Elizabeth Howard will appear in the near future. I was also thrilled to work with April Mai, who did a painting using a print of one of my photographs as a canvas.