-David Wylie

-Images: Lia Crowe

David and Jorden Doody are more than just collaborative artistsB次元官网网址攖hey are wife and husband, mother and father, intuition and structure. Their art and relationship are intertwined, a conversation between two artists who create as one.

They first met at KelownaB次元官网网址檚 Hotel Eldorado in the summer of 2001. Jorden worked at the hotel as a housekeeper. David worked next door at Manteo Resort in parasailing. One momentous night, David went to the Eldorado bar with a friend; Jorden was there at a birthday party. When she walked up to the bar, near where he was sitting, David was paralyzed.

B次元官网网址淲e bumped into each other and had one of those classic love at first sight kind of stories,B次元官网网址� said David. B次元官网网址淲e fell madly in love and within a month moved into an apartment that had very little furniture, and we lived on the floor.B次元官网网址�

Neither had intended to stay long in Kelowna.

B次元官网网址淲e had both returned from elsewhere, being young ages of 19 and 20, and coming back to our hometown where our family was,B次元官网网址� said Jorden.

The couple gelled and only a few months later planned to move to the Grand Caymans together. Two days before their flight on September 13, 2001, planes were grounded and delayed after the 9/11 attack in New York City.

Not long after, while still in Canada, they discovered they were going to have a baby.

That was 20 years ago. Now just entering their 40s, theyB次元官网网址檙e still deeply invested and deeply passionate about their relationship.

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 know if anybody else could do what we do if they werenB次元官网网址檛 madly in love with each other,B次元官网网址� said Jorden.

The couple has always tried to work at the same place so they can spend all their time together.

B次元官网网址淎rt seems to be the language that we end up speaking with each other. So we make these crazy installations that really only we get because itB次元官网网址檚 a conversation between the two of us,B次元官网网址� said David.

Still, they strive to make art thatB次元官网网址檚 also accessible to those outside of their relationship. Using their different yet complementary styles, they add depth to their work.

B次元官网网址淎 lot of people find our work interesting because it is not just a conversation between one artist and the material at hand, with the viewer seeing the work afterwards. Our work is really a conversation between two separate artists [expressed] in the work itself. So thereB次元官网网址檚 already a conversation thatB次元官网网址檚 happening before it gets presented,B次元官网网址� said David.

Added Jorden: B次元官网网址淵ou can feel that thereB次元官网网址檚 a masculine and a feminine perspective intertwined a lot of the time, depending on the work.B次元官网网址�

Some of their pieces are developed over months, as the artists converse through their individual styles. Jorden has worked frequently in costuming and is comfortable with a variety of fabrics and materials to create touch and tactility. SheB次元官网网址檚 free-flowing, creative and intuitive.

DavidB次元官网网址檚 energy gravitates to planning, architecture and space. He teaches sculpture and painting at UBC.

Together, they create art thatB次元官网网址檚 worth venturing out to the gallery to see in person: tactile, textured, large-scale, exciting.

B次元官网网址淭he scope of our work is often larger than life. ThereB次元官网网址檚 a real kind of presenceB次元官网网址攜ou can feel it,B次元官网网址� said David. B次元官网网址淚n order to get that experience, we really need to go big before we go home.B次元官网网址�

While raising their children, the couple took the unorthodox path of attending art school, first at UBC in Kelowna, then Capilano University in Vancouver, and then on to MontrealB次元官网网址攚here David did his masterB次元官网网址檚 degree at Concordia. The family immersed itselfB次元官网网址攊ncluding the kidsB次元官网网址� in the vibrant arts scene.

B次元官网网址淚t set the bar pretty high,B次元官网网址� said Jorden.

They moved back to Kelowna three years ago, and Jorden has since completed her masterB次元官网网址檚 degree at UBC. Still, they maintain a studio in B次元官网网址渓a belle province.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e been in art school for 12 years,B次元官网网址� said David with a laugh. In fact, they were the first collaborative team to graduate as a unit from UBC nearly a decade ago.

Having the influence of children around has also led to a playful feeling, as displayed in recent installations in the Okanagan. In Kelowna, I Must Be StreamingB次元官网网址攅xhibited at Kelowna Art Gallery until November 1B次元官网网址� is a spacious, colourful display that incorporates a digital-age feel. In Vernon, Electric Sleep is a sculptural installation that uses re-purposed objects with sculptural elements juxtaposed with screen culture. It can be seen at the Vernon Public Art Gallery until December 22.

David has also been behind a mural project in KelownaB次元官网网址檚 Rutland area that will add a dozen public art pieces by artists from all over Canada, and locally, by the end of the year.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e injecting a lot of energy into the local art scene where we grew up,B次元官网网址� said David.

The Doodys describe their work as optimisticB次元官网网址攅ven if it is touching on darker topics. They donB次元官网网址檛 want people to feel confronted by the work, but rather be invited into it.

Their current work responds to the juxtaposition of staying grounded in the physical world while also existing in a digital realm. ItB次元官网网址檚 a theme that hits homeB次元官网网址攁lthough the couple grew up in a world where social media was not part of high-school life, their children have a different experience.

Their kids are now 18 and 15 years old, and have both found their own creative niches. Their elder offspring works in creative writing and poetry, as well as game design. Their younger child paints murals and helps with installations.

B次元官网网址淥ur kids have really had this super-cool opportunity to grow up in a studio environment with some of CanadaB次元官网网址檚 best and most creative minds,B次元官网网址� said David, adding theyB次元官网网址檝e spent time with poets, singers, designers and philosophers.

B次元官网网址淎rt and our relationship is a real reflection of our belief that itB次元官网网址檚 worth doing it, and itB次元官网网址檚 worth doing it wellB次元官网网址攚hether that means having a relationship and being married, raising our kids, making a painting or making a sculpture. We believe that itB次元官网网址檚 valuable and itB次元官网网址檚 worth putting all of our life and energy into it. And we really do go all the way,B次元官网网址� said David.

B次元官网网址淔ully invested,B次元官网网址� added Jorden.

Check out their art at .