 |
| Gillie and Marc with a sculpture of dogman, a dog/human hybrid (Photo courtesy Gillie and Marc) |
Here at SAT we don't pretend to be experts on art, but we know what we like and the sculptures and artwork of Gillie and Marc are up there. We were introduced to their work at Sculptures by the Sea, and have been intrigued ever since. After reading their new book and learning about their passion for animals we had to chat. Happily, they were up for it!
Who are you and what do you do?
We are contemporary artists, husband and wife team.
We have been collaborating to create art as one for the last 20 years applying
the iconic imagery of the dog/human and rabbit/human hybrid to celebrate the
powerful spiritual relationship that exists between man and animal.
Your sculptures and artwork are often
theriocephalic (an animal’s head is placed on a human body). Why do you use
this technique?
In Ancient Egyptian times theriocephaly was used in
art with the intention of giving humans the quality of an animal. By giving our
human sculptures the head of a dog we give it the qualities of a dog and make
ourselves better humans.
The hybrid also signifies embracing diversity and celebrating our differences.
You’ve said that dogs are the humans we’d like to
be. What is it about dogs that we love so much?
Like people,
dogs are pack animals. They’re good at reading faces, moods, emotions. Dogs
want to be part of our lives, and they’re responsive to our moods; that’s why
they make excellent companions for children, the sick, the elderly. The company
of dogs is good for our health and our souls. Perhaps this is why 42% of
Australians are dog owners.
The emotional
lives of dogs are simpler than ours. Dogs show love and loyalty, affection and
trust. They adore us, protect us, and always want to be with us. Dogs seem like
a version of ourselves, our better selves: joyous, spontaneous, living in the
moment, dedicated to pleasure, but never an entirely selfish pleasure, because
at heart they crave our love. And their love for us is unconditional.
We love our dogs
because they bring out our humanity. We recognise in them the qualities we most
admire in ourselves. Dogs are the people we want to be.
You are both professed animal lovers. Can you tell
us about any companion animals you share your lives with right now?
We have a fourteen year-old
Golden Retriever called ‘Moby’. He is a watchdog, a loving companion, and our
best friend. We also have a tabby cat called ‘Izzie’ who
has been with us for 17 years and is a treasured member of our family. We would
have more pets if we could but we also have 2 children so…
Have you ever taken them to the vet? Can you tell
us a bit about the experience?
We
have taken the pets to the vet for regular check ups and injections but so far
they have both been healthy (touch wood). We know the day is going to come when
we will loose them and that is so hard to even imagine that they will no longer
be in our lives. They have become as
quirky as we are and are truly a part of this family in every way.
How would you describe your bond?
Our love for each other is
the cornerstone of what we are and what we create. After meeting in Asia we realized
we had both found our soul mate with the same passion for art, animals, travel
and adventure . Seven days after that first meeting, we took the road to
Pokhara, Nepal, at the foot of Everest, and got married.
We have an amazing
friendship and respect for one another, we barely spend a day apart - our
family life and art life all blends wonderfully into one.
You dedicated Gillie and Marc: 20 Years of Marriage
and Art to all the rhinos whose lives have been taken from them. Can you tell
us a bit more about the plight of rhinos and the work you have done to increase
awareness?
Nearly 700 rhinos have been
killed in South Africa in 2013 making it the bloodiest year yet for rhino
poaching. The black rhinos numbers are down to only
3,600 in the wild and these beautiful creatures could be two years away from
extinction. Now critically endangered, rhinos desperately need the active
involvement of everyone to save their lives.
We have created a HUGE bronze rhino stampede in the
centre of Melbourne’s Federation Square. These life-size rhinos are a public
artwork called “RUN FOR YOUR LIFE.”
The work features three magnificent rhino sculptures
that invite the public to be part of their run for freedom and life. This
remarkable installation brings the call of the wild to the city and to the
people of Melbourne who already have a strong moral and environmental concern.
The first rhino has our dogman and rabbitgirl hybrids riding it. The next two
rhinos have saddles and the public are invited to ride them to save rhino
LIVES. When people ride the rhinos the sounds of a rhino stampede plays, so
people actually feel they are part of the run.
We were expecting a positive response but nothing like
the response we have received so far. Hundreds of thousands of people want to
climb, touch, cuddle and ride the rhinos.
With these sculptures we hope to
raise public awareness of the plight of rhino species in the wild. Now
critically endangered, rhinos desperately need the active involvement of
everyone to save their lives. We hope everyone who sets foot in Fed Square can
feel a connection to the three sculptures that spell out the rhino’s future.
How
can artists, and art, help animals?
We believe that is it the
duty of the artist to push boundaries and believe in the power of art to change
opinions, attitudes and finally actions.
In 2005 we believed that
art could save lives with their exhibition ‘Life Can’t Wait.’ We used our art
to change the lives of 12 Australians who urgently needed an organ donation.
The exhibition saved lives.
It toured around Australia raising awareness. When we did ‘Life Can’t Wait’ we saw what we could do for the welfare of others
through art and we became attracted to becoming a voice for others again. We’d
drawn all this attention and we wanted to do something good with it.
Now with our Rhino
installation at Federation Square our goal is to affect people so they’re
inspired to do as much as they can to help save these endangered species. In
essence, here we have turned our sculpture into public activism.
Wow! We hope to get down to Melbourne and see it. Meantime if you need a portable fix of Gillie and Marc, we recommend the book - its definitely readable, even for the non-artistically informed, and the pictures are stunning.
