Meet 7 Works Collective

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful 7 Works Collective. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with 7 Works Collective below.

7 Works Collective, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
The 7 Works Collective Artists had plans in 2020 to travel to Toronto Island for an Artists’ Residency: Gibraltar Point Artscape Artist Residency program . But, as often happened in 2020, well laid plans were derailed due to the COVID pandemic. Unable to attend the Artists’ Residency in person, the seven artists did their best to adapt to the situation and made plans to regularly “meet” virtually to see what we were all working on. This was how the group kept their creativity alive during these isolating times.

It was during one of these Zoom meetings when the plan was hatched to challenge each other to biweekly art prompts. Each artist would show a work of art in their medium and the remaining 6 artists would create a piece in their own medium based on the visual prompt either in their usual medium or a medium that was slightly outside of their comfort zone.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
The 7 Works Collective Artists had great plans in 2020 to travel as a group to Toronto Island for the Artists’ Residency. But, as often happened in 2020, our well laid plans were derailed due to the COVID pandemic.

Even though plans were upended the group committed themselves to creative activities during that week in May 2020 and furthered our hunt for inspiration by meeting on Zoom to see each other and talk about what we had done that week.

Unable to attend the Artists’ Residency in person, all seven artists did our best to adapt to the situation and made plans to regularly “meet” virtually to discuss what we were all working on. It was during one of these meetings the plan was hatched to challenge each other to biweekly art prompts. Each artist would show a work of art in their medium and the remaining 6 artists would create a piece in their own medium based on the visual prompt.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Previous to forming the 7 Works Collective as a solid group of artists, we were all artist-friends who created in a diverse range of skill sets: abstract painting, collage, embroidery, mosaic, silk fibre drawing and lens-based art.

If there is anything we all agree upon is that we would have all benefited from knowing much earlier in our careers about artist residencies. We have repeatedly met up at Artscape Gibraltar Point annually for 1-2 weeks of concentrated creativity. We do not share identical creative practises and this makes the group an exciting mix where learning about each other’s medium, inspiration and project execution has inspired all of us to explore the boundaries or each of our practises and expand our creative journeys.

Just recently we have accepted an invitation to a 1 month artists’ residency for January 2025 in Newfoundland at Pouch Cove. This will be our longest artists residency to date. This month is guaranteed to spark a plethora of new art inspired by this incredible location. Stay tuned we will keep you up to date on our website’s Blog. https://7workscollective.weebly.com/blog

Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?
When the world shut down, it was this group of seven artist friends who supported each other to overcome the challenges of lock downs, isolation, lack of art supplies from the art shops, closed galleries, etc. We shared ideas, critiques, “work arounds”, and tones of online opportunities. But mostly we inspired each other with what we were able to produce with each other’s support and enthusiasm.

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7 Works Collective

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