Allie and Gimmy
25.04.2024 Scout O’Donoghue
They are the post-punk lovers of the century whose individualised fashion sense, skilful application of paint-on-canvas and nuanced voices have taken this region by surprise. These motorbike-riding banshees have almost certainly caught your eye, captivated your gaze and infiltrated your mind without you even knowing it.
A contemporary Adam and Eve except they are both taking bites from the forbidden fruit, defying society's norms and running their own course on life. What can't these two do? Not much, let me tell you. For years I have watched these two from afar, admiring the ways in which they express themselves through the means of different creative outlets.
They have seamlessly mastered the art of exploration. Northern Rivers-based lovers Alexandra and Gimmy, alongside their very much-loved cocker spaniel, Darling, have together set up the basis of their home on the banks of Mullumbimby, Northern NSW. A modern-day Bonnie and Clyde love story, minus the crime (we hope).
This time around, heading north of home I find myself in the front yard of a beautiful Queenslander. Before I have even entered the property, I can hear the giggle of New Zealand born Ally, paired with fast-paced heavy footsteps coming from inside – almost as if the two are dancing to the rhythm of their own beat. This place is the kind you want to come home to; it is as if I had been living abroad for years and returning to my family home for the first time. The warmth shines through the cracks in the floorboards.
Darling is first to greet me. He rolls playfully at my feet. I do the same, immediately on the same level as this post-bath ball of fur. The chicks roll playfully out of the front door and all a sudden, we are all on Darling's level. Greeting each other in a houndlike way as if it were the appropriate human greeting. That’s what I love about these two: conforming is not outlined in their rule books. Whilst the daily grind of being artists is a hard-hit reality, they continue to play, encouraging each other each step of the way.
I am ushered inside shortly thereafter, following the sounds of The Clash that plays subtly on vinyl in the dim lit lounge room. Allie slumps into the baby pink leather couch as Gimmy returns to the scene holding a vintage green jug set. We sip ginger nectar from antique glasses and get down to the nitty gritty details of love, creativity and home life in our region.
Tell me how the both of you met
Allie:
What story are you going to tell…
Gimmy:
I'll go first, you are stuttering away
Allie:
No, no, no I'm going first. So,
Scout:
I like this; the bickering is good insight into your relationship.
Gimmy:
It's the realness of our relationship really.
Allie:
I had just moved here, I was at the Eltham to see Caitlin Harnett and the Pony Boys, and I just saw this chick move and I was like “aw fuck yeah I want to be her friend, what a legend’. She was with her partner at the time, we had a good chat briefly and then I don’t think I saw you guys again. They broke up and we started to salvage a nice friendship. It was after new year’s, and I was just being a scallywag (and so was she, probably) we were dancing, and I took her into a teepee and pashed her.
Gimmy:
We talked about tongue-scraping, and it just got me going. I don't know how people do without it, honestly.
Gimmy:
I obviously remember meeting Ally at The Eltham; it was the first time. I remember acknowledging how beautiful her spirit was. I was obviously with somebody at the time so there wasn’t any slippery business going on. We broke up shortly after that. I was sleeping in my van for a month at the Byron house– a classic 70’s commune vibe, and Ally was coming over heaps because she was friends with the guys there. She wanted to come sleep in my van one night, I dismissed her and said I was still healing.
I played at the Northern and saw Ally in a different light. The week before she had dyed her hair black, and I don’t know why because the bleached hair captivates me so much, but for some reason the black hair on that night– something shifted in me a little bit. That same night she just confidently grabbed my face and kissed me square on the lips out of nowhere. I had to remind myself not to freak out because she just wants to be friends.
I played at Falls, and we were sitting on these hay bales, and again she leant over and gave me the most pleasant pash. I honestly have never felt such peace and calmness in a first kiss before.
Scout:
And before each other, where were you in your life?
Allie:
I was heaps of different versions of myself. My Sydney scallywag stage at art school was a good time, I explored myself as an artist and definitely enjoyed myself. I was painting on my clothes, welding bronze, and then took to performance arts
Gimmy:
Kissing all the girls and boys…
Allie:
I went back to NZ and did some reconsolidating with the family.
Gimmy:
I did a lot of travelling; I wanted to learn a lot about the world and gain inspiration that way. I've always been doing music since I was young. I was travelling heaps; Mexico, South America, Asia. Just before covid hit I wanted to lay foundations and stopped travelling. I joined a girl band, and we had a great time touring around Spain. That unfortunately ended, everyone needed different things. I travelled up and down the Australian coast doing gigs, learning about myself through different relationships and experiences and that's when I started painting.
Scout:
Where did you grow up?
Gimmy:
I grew up on the south side of Brissy. It never felt like home; it is a beautiful place but conservative. Mullum is home; you can be who you want to be, it is celebrated here.
Scout:
Where do you both think your source of creativity comes from?
Gimmy:
Probably, honestly, just the feelings of being human; I feel so sensitively. I think emotion-based. Allowing my inner child to be alive is a balance between feeling the seriousness of life but also allowing myself to play.
Allie:
Mine is probably internal dialogue with myself; seeing the things in my heart that need comforting. I use art for this. It comes through a really layered process.
Scout:
Is anyone's family creative?
Gimmy:
My upbringing was super joyful but was quite conservative. My family are Northern Irish so growing up in an Irish culture was a lot about song and dance so dad would play music; Eric Clapton, the Clash, The Smiths. We were always singing and playing together. Mum, the poor thing doesn’t have a creative bone in her body, nurture is more her forte. Ma and pa focused not so much on the creativity but maybe more on structure and money. They came from working class in Northern Ireland and wanted to make something of themselves when they moved to Australia at twenty-five.
So they focused on that, and I saw the tax it did on the human spirit. There were big sacrifices for living that type of lifestyle that made me think about how I want to spend my life, and what matters to me the most to focus on. I think I have taken the opposite approach; money is money. Of course you do need money to survive, and as you get older you realise you need more. But I was so repulsed by that and decided to follow my dreams. Doing what makes me feel alive and purposeful in this short blip of time on earth.
Allie:
I think for me, my parents have always been kind of accepting of what I do. Creatively, how I dress, musically. I think the creativity comes through my grandmother. She is a really talented watercolour painter; nan went to art school and is into sewing as well. My uncle is also the most amazing painter of realism, it’s insane. There is definitely creativity that runs all through my family. I have had the freedom to do whatever I want to do and am supported in whatever brings me joy.
Scout:
You have dabbled in a lot of different things?
Allie:
Painting is where it is for me at the moment. Only because I don’t have the equipment for welding. It’s fun to have different outlets of expression. The world can put so much pressure on reining in and mastering one art, which is a huge shame because it takes the play out of creating.
Scout:
Okay, well that’s covered, what can’t you two do? It seems you are good at everything you invest your time into.
Gimmy:
I can't!
Ally:
You can do anything!
Gimmy:
Music and painting are all the expressions I need. It’s the silence and the chaos at once. I can’t not do both; it’s yin and yang. Chaos is music, I actually get really overstimulated easily. I don’t actually listen to music often, I sit in silence more often than not. I think painting for me is like meditation; you drop into a space where you are just focusing on something and there is no sound.
Scout:
What’s more of the heart zone for you?
Gimmy:
Songwriting.
Allie:
Painting is something I use for myself. If it makes someone else happy that's also a bonus. Caring for my human, I do need a space where I can express and push boundaries. A space where you can leave all judgement. It’s kind of funny, learning about the awkwardness and feelings that come through my painting.
Scout:
How do you both work collaborating together?
Gimmy:
Good. Just like our relationship, we are fucking honest, which works really well for us. We are just no bullshit kind of people. Which I see as true love, baby…
Allie:
We will paint over each other's stuff happily
Gimmy:
If we do a co-lab, I will take my time painting something I really care about, and she will just go and paint over it. It’s humorous when we work together because we are so similar, but so different in how we express ourselves.
Scout:
Is there any friendly competition that goes on?
Allie:
I think the only time there is competition is if I am wearing my personalised red jacket but she wants to wear it.
Gimmy:
That is so bull– honestly. She has such a last-child syndrome with her clothes.
Allie:
Fashion is the main competitive thing. If I want to wear a suit because I always wear suits, she wants to wear a suit. Someone usually has to back down.
Gimmy:
But sometimes we both agree to match.
Allie:
It's awkward sometimes, we will both rock up to coffee at eight in the morning in, like, matching shirts, jeans, and a tie and it is the most cringe thing.
Scout:
I mean you live together, sleep together and are in a relationship with one another… there is going to be some synchronicity. Talk to me about your backyard studio?
Both:
It's where we create.
Gimmy:
It is honestly one of the most inspiring things, watching Ally painting. I could sit there all day watching her. Her process is messy. I'll be wearing my favourite shirt, and she will just peg a pit of paint at her artwork, and it will splatter over me. It’s literally a work of art watching her paint; she doesn’t give a shit. She isn’t judging herself. She is in total flow.
Scout:
How long have you both been in the Northern Rivers?
Allie:
Two years.
Gimmy:
I've been in this whole stretch like seven years.
Scout:
Do you think it's home?
Both:
Yup.
Scout:
How do you find practising in the Northern Rivers?
Allie:
I feel like I prefer the stimulation from the cities. But there is such a contrast from going from Sydney to New Zealand, where I am in such total isolation. Being here, it feels breathable. I miss the art culture in the cities, but I enjoy having the space to create.
Gimmy:
It's a fantastic place to create, there is not too much to overwhelm you. Creatively you have to find it yourself. The music scene is good, and it is full of creatives, but I wish there was just unity with the creatives around here. It feels quite far and wide, and everyone is just in their own bubble. Let's all talk. Let's all talk about the struggles and the triumphs and the processes. Sometimes it feels isolating.
Scout:
What’s your favourite thing you own? Come show me?
Allie:
This! This is my Barbie doll. I created her in covid. I think she is really cool. She is me.
Gimmy:
This is mine! *Holds up Darling* (the dog)
Scout:
And something of each other's that you don’t like-- not personal, more tangible…
*Walks into bedroom*
Gimmy:
Alright Scout, I’ve got it!
Gimmy:
Nothing! I’M PERFECT!
Come here, Scout! This! *Points to clothes spilling out of wardrobe* It's actually looking good, it’s usually spewing out everywhere but look at that chaos in there!
Allie:
*Whispers* There is nothing I don’t like about her...
*Gimmy leaves room*
Allie:
Okay, now she is gone, it's this. *points to kettle in wardrobe*
She leaves her kettle next to my shoes.
Scout:
Why is there a kettle in your bedroom?
Allie:
It's her handbag…
*Opens kettle lid and exposes a combination of money, lipstick and cigarette remnants*