"How I make Collage Elements for my Paintings"
I am just finishing a workshop at the Sedona Art Center, so this is very timely! I am also teaching Abstract Painting and Collage workshops in 2 Trade Shows - The Artisan Expo in Santa Fe next week and The Art of the Carolinas in Raleigh this November. This short video lesson shows how I prep my collage papers!
Here's a little art history... As an art form, collage art emerged around 1910. Picasso, Max Weber and Braque experimented in Cubism simply because pure paint did not satisfy them anymore. Collage art was also a form of silent rebellion. Art for Art's Sake soon became their form of resistance to capitalists' repression.
By 1930, artists were making their art by using discarded materials (cardboard, paper, screens, etc.). Abstract art in the US was a "hot product" influenced by the European painters.
In the United States, Max Ernst was developing his collages at the Sedona Art Center. Soon other American artists started to collage and paint as well, simply because they wanted to be part of the discussion. The abstract American artists at the time felt isolated, alienated and excluded from the revolutionary developments overseas.
Today, collage is an intuitive process of concealing, revealing, adding and subtracting until the artist's goals and intentions emerge from the layers of construction and paint. Using a variety of materials and techniques, the artist invents in their "laboratory for creativity." Keeping with the original history of college art, it's all about risk-taking, new ideas, intentions and inventions.
Watch the video to see how I make my own graphic collage materials - I include this exercise in my workshops - the creative process helps to keep the atmosphere loose and free: Painting, tearing, gluing!
This is fun stuff! Keep Smiling!
Thank you for your interest, questions, comments and support!
To view more of my favorite art materials, go to my website and click on my "Studio Resource List" - you can download it as a PDF.
