Cross Pollination

In 2002, I began talking to poet Jennifer Frank about exchanging work: trading her poems for my art, each of us would respond to the work we had received, before trading again. We began this project casually, but both of us quickly realized that we were really excited about the exchange, and that the poems and art that were being created were worthy of an exhibition. We began to think of these works as a collaborative, combined body of work, and 18 months after our first exchange, in April 2004, we exhibited Cross Pollination at the Harwood Art Center.

The exhibit consisted of large-scale framed poems, two poems written on the walls, drawings, sculptural and photographic work. After installation, we laid in "pollen" lines on the floor with yellow contractor’s chalk, so viewers could trace the path of exchange, bouncing between art and poems and getting a sense of how the process worked.

We had a great write up in the Albuquerque Journal, and Jennifer read at the reception, accompanied by Bee, who had responded to Jennifer’s poems with evocative electronic music. The entire project expanded the direction of my work and continues to affect my approach to imagery and themes. Long live artistic collaboration!!!