Anna Horton and Sophie Bullock (One Five West): Collaborative Artists
Anna Horton and Sophie Bullock are two halves of the artist duo One Five West. They have been working in collaboration since May 2014, whilst also continuing to develop their own personal practices. Having worked alongside each other as part of a collective artist run space, Stryx, Birmingham, this partnership was born from a call out for applications to the Fierce Forward scheme, part of the long-running Fierce Festival. The pair comment how this scheme and accompanying bursary gave them the freedom and funds to experiment and test ideas, rather than many other proposals that require a final idea to be proposed before the bursary has been awarded. Fierce provided an excellent platform for the formation of One Five West, exploring and creating work as a result of Anna and Sophie's very different approaches to their own practices.
Whilst both Anna and Sophie studied Fine Art at Birmingham City University, Sophie and Anna have very different practices; Sophie works with video and digital media, whilst Anna's work explores sculptural forms. These two media caused an interesting dynamic that resulted in the first project that Anna and Sophie worked on as One Five West, the Light and Sound Playground, which explored the ideas of adult play. Through this work, Anna and Sophie's shared skills and ideas formed an experimental approach to merging sculptural forms and digital technology. The artists state that they aimed to produce "interactive objects that people can play with and touch, without having a prescribed instruction. There's no right or wrong way to use these objects, it's just something like a clue, a visual aid". This is a common theme that has been explored throughout the work produced by One Five West as their career has developed and new commissioning and residency opportunities have formed.
The first commissioned piece by One Five West was shown as part of the very first Digbeth First Friday event. Having found an online tutorial on how to hijack an Ikea table, they placed a mirrored box inside, filled it with water and experimented with ink and pipettes then live streamed the results onto the walls. This use of analogue and digital formats demonstrates the artists' intentions; "throughout the whole of the work we have always tried to use digital technology but make it accessible". This technological experimentation continued to develop, experimenting with light boxes, ink, low frequency speakers and discovering interesting technologies such as connecting the everyday, such as bananas and tin cans, to digital systems to create musical tones.
"you get that kind of instant effect that everyone can enjoy and you don't need to have any understanding of the technology to appreciate it"
As young and relatively newly graduated artists, both Anna and Sophie have quickly developed a strong presence within the local arts scene in Birmingham as both One Five West and as individuals. Since their formation in May 2014 they have exhibited at Digbeth First Friday, Fierce Festival and the Longbridge Light Festival. They also have upcoming commissions at Fierce Festival 2015, the Mitchell Arts Centre (Stoke-on-Trent) and are currently undertaking a residency with Birmingham Open Media.
Reflecting on their progression from art school to industry, Anna and Sophie discuss the opportunities that helped them to break into the arts scene. Having graduated in 2012, Sophie went into a full time job as a waitress, eventually having the moment of "Oh my god, I've got my art degree and now I don't know what to do". However, she identifies the turning point in the start of her career as an artist as being selected for New Art West Midlands; "that was the catalyst for thinking 'ok, I've got something to aim for'. Anna graduated from the same course a year later, also achieving a place at New Art West Midlands. Anna and Sophie's achievements with New Art West Midlands provided a foundation for their profile as individual artists and the opportunities that followed helped them to build upon their practice and their status in the arts scene.
"from there each one is like a stepping stone for the next one"
Although the work of One Five West appears to show a smooth transition from gaining their first commission to achieving a steady flow of work, it is unfortunately not that simple. Anna and Sophie share their advice with us, giving an insight into the hard work and dedication that got them where they are today.
"I didn't realise through university how I should have been applying for stuff... I also didn't realise how much admin would be involved in actually getting your work out there... for me the road to trying to be an artist actually happened after I graduated rather than preparing myself at uni"
Sophie and Anna recommend that building a presence in the industry is essential and should begin as soon as possible; "even just as practice". Some excellent resources exist online that can be used for ideas of competitions and open exhibitions to apply for, as well us practical advice and guidance such as filling in tax returns and managing clients; for example http://www.artquest.org.uk/
Anna also notes how she volunteered at a wide range of organisations and events whilst studying, which opened up many opportunities and helped her to develop many of the skills that support the work of One Five West today such as arts management and administration. For example Anna volunteered with EC-Arts (now WERK) for six months, later being commissioned, as One Five West, to produce an installation for the Longbridge Light Festival in October 2014. whilst volunteering for the Fierce Festival, Anna also identified opportunities that allowed her to explore her own artwork further, as during this time she had created a participatory concept in which light blocks were placed around the city of Birmingham and the public were invited to bring them together for an event. Anna was able to use a space that was occupied by the festival for her temporary event.
The relationships that were made very early in their career, and for Anna many that were made during her time at art school, have continued to support their work as professional artist through a professional profile; "people knew who we were when we applied".
"If you can put yourself out there and you do have time to do those things for free, it is so much easier to do things for free when you are at university" (or generally in any form of education)
Seeking out opportunities to experience and immerse yourself in the local arts scene is a significant part of being an artist and it is important to understand this from an early stage; events, openings, private views, talks and workshops all offer excellent opportunities to engage with activities and people within the arts. One Five West note that "you'll start to see people and then that networking becomes a socialising event... and then it's not scary any more and there are people that you meet just accidentally that will be really useful to you"
"Get involved in what is going on around you... when you are at university you are in that university bubble and I think if you have that support outside of university you will continue to make work after you graduate because it doesn't seem that scary"
A big mistake that many people make whilst studying the arts is lacking good quality documentation of their work. Sophie explains "I've made a lot of work at university that I just haven't taken good photos of and therefore doesn't exist any more and I can't submit it to anything, even though it might be good work". Studying the arts is a unique period of time in which you have the most freedom to explore your creative talents fully, unrestricted by the realities of life such as clients, time constraints and often the need to put food on the table. Don't underestimate the work that you produce during this time and make sure that it is documented well through photographs. Perhaps it may be possible to collaborate with another student that is more able to take good quality images that may be used later for a proposal or competition. Also with this comes the quality of documentation for a website. By keeping your website up to date, with clear and high quality documentation, people have a reference point for your work. Sophie and Anna both state how it may be uncommon, but they have received commissions through their website.
Another key point that One Five West stress is collaboration and networking, although it isn't all about getting more work, there is a huge range of benefits to maintaining a social aspect to your creative practice. For example Anna and Sophie are part of Stryx, a 9 piece collective who came together in search of a studio space. With so many artists working together in close proximity, Stryx was able to secure a large space in Minerva Works, Birmingham. Although huge and more than they really needed, this space meant they could run their own events and exhibitions as well as have the space to work. The space became and working gallery and studio space, working to a programme and providing the artists with set deadlines to work to.
"deadlines are something that are really important to keep up your momentum and keep up morale, because if you don't have anything in the pipeline it's a bit like you're in freefall"
One of the biggest concerns for aspiring arts professionals across the industry is how to survive. Arts professionals are often self-employed or work on a project-by-project basis, which can be unstable and unpredictable. One Five West offer an interesting insight into their own approach to this, however emphasise that it is most important to find out what suits you. Every situation is unique and something that may work for one person may not work for another. A part time job is one option, however Sophie notes "you have to be quick to adapt to all things because opportunities will come along and you'll have to stop".
"Pick up the jobs and you'll have to drop them again, but that's the kind of industry you're in, where projects come along at once and you'll have to pick them all up, run with it and juggle them, but then you'll have a really quiet few months where nothing is happening and you just have to adapt"
This interview with Sophie and Anna of One Five West has given an excellent insight into the workings of both an artist duo and two very individual artists, with evident success and potential that will continue through their upcoming commissioned work. They do not deny the difficulties that they have faced and offer advice in hindsight. This is ultimately a very slight view of the wide range of lifestyles and approaches that creative professionals have to work, however they offer interesting and considerate advice that may be contemplated throughout the many creative industries.