artiphacts

Collecting, Sorting and Using: Some Tips for Collage Artists

I've been getting lots of queries lately about choosing and using collage fodder.  Probably because right now there are so many art classes, both online and in-person, that use collage in one form or another.   At this point in art history the art journal format is widely popular, and collage is very often the medium of choice, or at least in some way incorporated onto the pages of journals and sketchbooks.  

It has been a while since I've taught classic adult art lessons in a classroom setting, but it occurred to me that a lot of what's missing from all the "how-tos" online, at workshop events, and at in-shop classes, are the basics.  It's easy to find quick, hands-on techniques, but the basics, well, they take time to teach, time to learn, and are just not all that much fun for your $, £, and €.  But, if you don't have a grasp of them, then all those techniques you've learned will leave you asking, "What's first?  What's next?  What's important?  and Where do I begin?"  Click HERE to continue reading...

 

Collage: The Good And The Bad Of Using Other People's Art. . .

To Begin With...

...I'm not referring to plagiarism, copyright violation, or anything else that implies anything used illegally or without permission.  This is simply about adding papers, images, stamps, ephemera, stickers, tapes, rub-ons, collage images, and anything else that could fall into the category of "sold for the purpose of making art". 

Here and there you pick up conversations about the pros and cons about the use of things in artwork that were not made expressly by the artist.  At one end, there's the group that would always forbid anything not made by the artist, except maybe the paper and the crayon.  At the other extreme, there's the (thankfully small) group of people who buy a stamp, ink it, stamp it, and say "Look what I made".   

In my opinion, the first group lacks imagination and needs to "get real"!  After all, would they invalidate one of Lidia's fabulous and famous spaghetti sauce recipes because the the tomatoes were tinned instead of hand-pressed fresh?  Possibly, but I would hope not.  And the latter--well, maybe if you're 5, but any older than that and you'd better just say "Look what I stamped"!

There is a thin line that runs through the middle of this however, and assuming that copyright issues are not a factor, there is also some legitimate concern over what you should call your own, and what ethically should be credited to others, even though you assembled it.  If you're interested in my thoughts on this, click HERE to continue reading...