Rhiannon Silver and Joe Mawson have a somewhat ambivalent collaborative practice. Right from the start of Morphic Resonance they organised their space with permeable screens dividing their separate work areas, highlighting the sometimes they do sometimes they don’t nature of their collaboration. Having moved their shared studio to PSL, they worked actively on a
number of collaborative and individual art projects.
Diverse in nature, these share a common concern with copying as both a method and a motif. Works included a performance in which Silver had her hair cut like fellow Leeds artist Iona Smith and a video where Mawson flooded a replica of PSL’s riverside gallery, referencing sources including 60’s TV show Stingray and art collective Superflex’s recent film ‘Flooded MacDonalds’. For Silver Mawson copying embodies an aspiration that often finally fails, thus pointing to the concerns behind their desire for acknowledgement and showing the investment they have in their relationships with others.
From 12th May Silver Mawson will initially exhibit the work they’ve made during the first 6 weeks of the project. Following this they will use their area in the riverside gallery to launch ‘Hell Yes’, a gallery concept, presenting a programme of events and exhibitions. Curation, like copying, involves appropriation of others’ work. During this element of the project the artists will further explore the collaborative relationship between themselves and other artists.
The Hell Yes programme will be published at http://h-e-l-l-y-e-s.com
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From left to right: Joe Mawson ‘Standby for Action!’, digital video on DVD (13 mins), 2009: Joe Mawson ‘3Newhey.jpg’, digital photograph on LCD screen, 2009; Rhiannon Silver ‘Kim’, digital animation with found soundtrack on DVD (17 mins), 2009; Joe Mawson ‘2073053907_58c0c45072.jpg’, pencil on paper, 2009
Photograph: Simon Warner
Rhiannon Silver ‘Untitled’; printed cotton, papier mache, emulsion, David Robertson;
2009. Photograph: Simon Warner
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