The last time these North Shore artists worked on an exhibit together was 18 years ago. Their latest installation at the Louis Pohl Gallery, "Fruit Forward and M. Good & Juicy Art," is a collection of new and recent works. The public can see it at the gallery's Christmas party from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday.

Erickson, who primarily works with stained glass — doing liturgical window restorations and stained-glass window designs for Lucas Film Ltd. and many other notable clients — created five different fruit series (22 pieces) for the show: deep-etched, sand-blasted, painted and kiln-fired leaded-glass windows; sliced fruit ornaments and — not his usual medium — drawings, paintings and limited-edition prints.

Goodwill's 17 brightly colored works include acrylic and oil pastel paintings and limited-edition prints of fruit, natural scenes and fashion accessories.

I sat down with the couple in Hale'iwa before they headed into town to run some holiday errands.

Q. What made you decide to do a show together after all this time?

E: We were approached about it, and although I rejected the idea at first, Margo reminded me that I had been talking about doing a show based on fruit for 30 years. It was my opportunity to finally do it.

Q. Jim, when the show opened, the "Fruit Forward" installation, of fresh fruits in a Plexiglas box, was in the front window. It's not there anymore. What happened to that piece?

E: Originally, as part of my fruit series, I bought and chose 22 fresh fruits that were seasonal and site-specific to Chinatown. They were an important point of the show because they were homage to my source of inspiration — fresh sliced fruit. I designed and built a Plexiglas box for a dozen of the thinly-sliced fruits, and hung it in the front window with the intention of watching it evolve during the course of the exhibit. After six days, the gallery owner asked me to take it down. She said she thought it was unattractive and couldn't stand the fermented-fruit smell. I thought it smelled fine, but I took it out of the window and brought it home to my studio. It's still there and looks fabulous. It is collapsing down, and mold is starting to appear, but that was the game plan. I've been watching it evolve, and I've been photographing it daily. At the finish, I will have a documentation of how it went from full, lovely and fresh to altered and matured. My intention is that the documentation will be available at some future date. It's remarkable how the pink grapefruit, local oranges and limes are holding up. The watermelons and papayas are not doing too well.

Q. Do you critique each other's work, and is that problematical?

E: Yes and no, it isn't. We both respect each other's opinions. I don't think we've gotten into a fight over a critique. We've learned to ask the question correctly, like, "Excuse me, would this be a good time to make a comment about part of the painting?" Sometimes she says no. Then later, she'll come into my studio and say, "Now would be a good time to critique." There's some diplomacy that's been developed.

G: We've also learned not to make comments when the painting is walking out the door in a frame but when it's still in a place of flux. Sometimes, he's so right on, and it's usually something I've been struggling with anyway.

Q. Did you learn anything specific about yourself getting ready for this exhibit?

E: Yes. For several years, I've been going into Margo's studio and saying, "Honey, that piece is kind of tight. Why don't you loosen up and get more airy and relaxed with it?" When I started working on my fruit pieces, I had these fantasies about how loose they would be. She came into my studio and said, "You've been telling me to loosen up for the last few years, and look at what you're painting! You're painting really tight, like botanical drawings." I told her she was absolutely right, but that's the way it was coming out, and I had to go with it. Eventually, I did get some looser pieces.

Q. Do you do anything kooky or unusual for the holidays?

E: We photograph our dog, Jazzy — a black Lab and golden retriever mix — for our Christmas card, with various headdresses. She happens to be a ham and loves being photographed in her seasonal headgear. Margo also puts lights underneath and around the legs of our glass dining room table. Recently, we've taken to putting red Santa gloves with white trim on our Chinese terra-cotta soldier.