Melbourne has missed local art duo Dabs and Myla since they ventured off to Los Angeles.  But they are back with twin events in Collingwood and Prahran to showcase their new paintings, some of their friends' work and a new book too.

An exclusive interview with this amazing collaborative couple ahead of their double opening nights.  They talk to The Vine about having cool artist friends, Disneyland and bad American chocolate.

There is a real beauty in collaboration.  What are some of the benefits from working together?

DABS:   The main one I think  is having someone to constantly give feedback!  A lot of the time as an artist you are left to your own thoughts. Day after day staring at what you are working on, with little crazy voices inside your head questioning everything you are doing. "Does this work?" "Maybe this just looks shit and I can't see it?" "Is this just a stupid idea?"

Well, thats how it had always been for me. But having someone who you trust that you are working with gives you a REAL voice that can tell you how it is. A real voice with real opinions that can be constructive instead of just paranoid and annoying like your conscious!

Being a couple and collaborating has even more advantages! It means that even though we are working seven days a week, and like 12 hour days, we have each other to keep company.  And we don't have to really worry about an outside relationship holding us back from our goals!  We both have the same drive, and long term goals and can work together towards these things and share in the triumphs too!

And who are some of the other LA artists that you've collaborated with?  Why were you attracted to these artists?

DABS: For this show we have collaborated with four guys from LA: Greg 'CRAOLA' Simkins, Jersey Joe, The Witness and KMNDZ.

Over the past year we have spending a lot of time with Craola, on projects and working alongside him in his studio. We met him on a trip to the states about three years ago, and hit it off straight away!  He is such an amazing artist! It blows my mind! And he has a very similar work ethic to us, so collaborating with him is so easy! All the collaborations we have done with Greg always evolve so naturally.

Jersy Joe RIME and WITNESS/TYKE where both two of our favorite artists/graffiti writers from LA for a long time. Not long after moving to the States we hooked up with both of them to paint some walls.  Apart from being triple OG, it turns out that they are two of the coolest guys out there!  We hang out with Jersey Joe a lot because he lives near us in Hollywood.  We pretty much make a trip out to the O.C to go to Disneyland with Witness and his wife at least once a month!  I think they are  the only people we've met who are crazier about Disneyland than we are!  And as well as hanging out, we have been working on a lot of different projects with both these guys.

MYLA:  KMNDZ is a super talented artist who we have been hanging out with over the last few months, his work is amazing and he is really starting to make a huge name for himself in the pop surrealism scene.  We have felt very honoured to work with all four of these artists, they are very inspiring on many different levels! It was great fun creating works with of of these artists!!!

Hollywood and Western describes a place (the intersection of the streets where you lived), but it is also very evocative.  What's the mood of this show?

MYLA: The work we have created for the exhibition is how we see Los Angeles, the parts of LA that we feel attracted to, and the parts of the city that we notice. Our work for the show is definitely a little grittier and darker than our paintings from our last Melbourne show, but there is a lot of fun in the work too!  For us Los Angeles is an amazing inspiration, it is cluttered with imagery and people, from its highs to its lows.

How long have you been away?  How does Melbourne seem to you now?

MYLA:  We have been in Los Angeles for almost 11 months. It feels a little strange to be back in Melbourne for a visit! We definitely notice and appreciate more about Melbourne after being away for a while.  All the things I have always loved about Melbourne I still love! 

Are you returning to LA permanently?  What is the allure of LA for you both as artists?

DABS:  We are not too sure if we will be in LA permanently, but we will definitely be there for another two or three years. I guess we will reassess it then, but I have a feeling that we might end up staying there for a lot longer.  Time will tell!!

MYLA:  Los Angeles is such an interesting and inspiring place, it's almost difficult to see it all even within a year! There is a lot to explore and a lot to take inspiration from. When we first visited LA together three years ago we were instantly attracted to the city, and each time we vistited after the first time we loved it more and more.  I can't exactly put into words why we love it so much!!!

What are your top 5 Melbourne hot spots and top 5 LA spots?

DABS/MYLA:

In Los Angeles...


In Melbourne...


What are some souvenirs that you'll be taking back to LA?

DABS:  A lot of our friends there want us to bring back as much Cadbury's chocolate as we can.  They don't really get much of it there and most people seem to really like it.  Maybe it's because most Hershey chocolate tastes like old cheese mixed with coco mixed with a fart!!

"Hollywood & Western" by Dabs & Myla
New paintings and installation
by Dabs Myla, featuring collaborations by Dabs Myla with Los Angeles artists Jersey Joe Rime, Greg “Craola” Simkins, The Witness and KMNDZ.

Opening: Thursday 1 April 2010, 7-10pm
Runs until 11 April 2010

191 - 193 Johnston St
Collingwood

ALSO
"Super Smooth" Dabs & Myla
Book Launch

One Night Only: Wednesday 7  April 2010, from 6pm
229 Chapel St
Prahran