Art of Collage for a beginner

Everybody else understood we were to fill in the object. Surrounded by discarded print pages, we cut, sliced and glued printed pieces onto paper. Now small pieces did not appeal as large pieces cover more of the object.

Anyway, I managed to borrow a few themed pages to pop in to liven things up.  I  had sketched in objects’ shadows, so needed to include the collage shadows too–or so I thought because we include shadows in painting. I didn’t realise different rules apply.  I will use teal paper for shadows, I thought. Big mistake!  Anyway to cut a long story short, the bowl transformed into a fish bowl; the pyramid transformed into a tent. The cylinder included floral stems, so became a vase of flowers. The original shapes were consumed by the print, but the discovery  was an intriguing process.

Themes of caravans and palm trees popped up and voila. Now I feel like a Noosa holiday!  I still don’t understand how to do a collage, but with a little digital colouring I have an interesting work of art. Like everybody, I need to develop stronger skills in basics though, like cutting, which is a supreme skill. In each artistic field, I need to be more exact, develop stronger dexterity and greater control. Some people have these skills already, but I have other skills like writing.

Looking back now, years later, I am amazed how much discovery there was the day I made my first collage. There was a kind of magic in the whole process.

I learned

1. Choose a single object   

2. Stick to the lines   

3. Consider avoiding print as a background. It blends too much with the objects though print is great inside the object

Note I ‘painted’ the background in colour and it now looks better. 

4. Cut small pieces like mosaic, but maintain emphasis on the original shape.