Dutch artists Rutger Termohlen and Collin van der Sluijs have been collaborating for nearly five years. Both formally trained in several disciplines, they have learned to use their skill to push their practice beyond what they’ve been taught. Collin and Rutger’s collective work pushes their own boundaries creating work how they want and according to their own rules. When Collin and Rutger collaborate, one experiences a work in which a shared, give and take approach yields a completely unique, eclectic, yet harmonious final product. Witnessing the developed style of two very individual and versatile artists merged in an experimental and often spontaneous process, is inspiring in its affirmation that anything is possible, anything can work and the possibilities are endless.
Regarding the biggest challenges in working collaboratively, Collin and Rutger responded with: “The question says it already, the challenge. Things go well and not so well during the process. It’s up to us to work with what happens during the process to make the best out of it, which is not always easy of course. You have to be satisfied at the end, and working together to get to that moment of satisfaction is the biggest challenge.” That sort of paints an interesting picture, pardon the pun, in that working together to make beautiful work isn’t as easy as it seems, and neither party can simply sit back and let the other carry the load.
