Tidal Explorations – A New Collaboration

About a year ago, artist and photographer Cim MacDonald and I decided we were destined to do art together in some way. Since I work in clay, glazes and fire and she works in color, canvas and images, we were as far apart we could be, but we knew the calling was there.

We started out by teaching each other about our respective mediums. It didn’t take long before we decided we wanted to combine our talents into something new and exciting. I was keen to learn how to make my pottery more ‘painterly’ and she wanted to experiment with 3D work.

As we chatted more and more we just let our thoughts percolate until the muse arrived. One day one of us, I’m not even sure who, came up with the idea of creating tidal pools. Cim spends a great deal of time at the beach with her camera and paint brushes and so she had lots of ‘raw material’ to study our concept. I have been collecting texture materials and beach ideas for years. Before long we were up and away!

It’s been a challenge – Cim had to learn that I can’t always satisfy her need to blend colours with consistent results because the firing process changes things so dramatically. I had to be better primed in the world of color theory and composition. Slowly, we began to understand how our strengths could intermingle to create the magic.

It is early in the game, and our ideas are running faster than time permits but we are having the time of our lives! Both of us are heavily involved in other projects, but we are determined to fit in lots of play time in the next few months.

Our goal is to host a joint exhibition to coincide with the launch of her new photography book “Chemainus  Gardens – The Beauty of the Seasons“ later this year. We hope you enjoy our “explorations” along with us. Please join us on facebook and visit our websites:

Cim’s Website                 Cim’s Facebook

Peggy’s Website         Peggy’s Facebook