Collage Thoughts on the 12th International Collage Exchange

Collage is the twentieth century's greatest innovation.
~ Robert Motherwell

I love the art of collage. My own process of making collage is always evolving. I’m constantly exploring ways to alter papers, pushing composition, and trying different ideas.

One thing that is fairly constant in my process is to trust my instinct to tell me when the elements are just so.

Of late I have been laying papers on the support, arranging and rearranging, then pondering. Often I decide to remove something from the composition.

When I think I’ve got it I lay a piece of glass on top of the collage which flattens the whole composition so I can step back and take a good long look. Sometimes I just know the work is complete and other times I run a mental check list of elements and principals of design.

For me, the enjoyment is all about the process of creating, exploring, being authentic and striving to continue to grow as an artist.

When I started to attend workshops, I first studied with Pat Dews. I learned a lot! Pat says in her book Creative Composition and Design “As important as it is to understand the elements and principals of design, there is a lot to be said about something just looking and feeling “right.” Uniqueness in personal vision can be more important than technical skill. Nurture and stimulate your imagination. Listen to your intuition and go with your gut feeling.” Good advice.

Another artist who knows the joy of bringing pieces together to make a pleasing whole is Joan Schulze.

Working…

Collect, combine, define, compose,
discard, cover and peel.
Stop,
look, mark, cut,
refine, paste and press.
Focus,
shift, touch, observe,
decide…accept beauty.

~Joan Schulze 1999

with permission of the artist, from The Art of Joan Schulze.

Following are several of the collage I received in the just completed 12th International Collage Exchange, with links when available. Enjoy!





Journey 9, by Donna Watson



New York Times Series #6, by Jeanne E. Rohen



Window Tracing, by Mary Ellen Long



Untitled, by Renea Erickson




Oak #5, by Jeanne Mankinen


Jeanne's statement: This year my collages reflect my concern for the environment - including both animals and plants. I hope that humans will make progress in appreciating and caring for other species on our beautiful planet.




Affirmation 9, by Jette Clover



In Touch 13, by Cordula Kagemann

Collage and an Interview!

Between moving my studio to its new home across the driveway, working and keeping an eye on the inaugural events, I haven’t had much time for creating art. But the International Collage Exchange is due to be in New Zealand in late March, so I am focusing on making my collages for the exchange. This is one of them I have completed, but haven’t named yet.





There is an opportunity to buy collage in the International Collage Exchange during the month of April. Last year I bought the collage of Joan Schulze, an artist whose work I admire. Her collage is shown here. It is titled Long Nights. Joan states her series for the 2008 exchange is An Exercise In The Poetry of 13. I notice Joan has sent in her collage for this year’s exchange already.


I have had fun interviewing Ruth Armitage, who has a blog called Art is Truth. The link to her interview is here. Ruth is a fun loving artist who uses color and shape to express her ideas. Her work is often figurative. I particularly enjoy her piece called Shoe Shopping.