Cool, Calm and Collaging

Posted bydebirileyPosted inabstract, art, inspiration, paintingTags:, , , , , , , ,
creative collage, blue and purple papers, debiriley.com

Collage. I think a person either loves this art form challenge, or hates it.

Collage seems to be so much like a large crossword puzzle to me. Its created so slowly, piece by piece.

One glued layer at a time.

 

creative collage, blue and purple papers, debiriley.com
“Layers” Creative Collage, debiriley.com

 

 

 

collage, paper layers, blue, green, debiriley.com
Collage Layer by Layer, debiriley.com

 

 

Collage  Cohesion

Its a thinking journey too, for me.

Where to go next?  Who should be adjoining? Who doesn’t fit in?  Who’s the screamer, the too loud neighbor?

How to subdue them?  Tame them?  Delete them!

How to create harmony? Direction?  A pathway for the viewer to follow?

All very good questions.

 

 

Atwell Gallery’s Monday group had 2 great weeks of collage. A completely New lesson. They did really well. I knew it was a challenge for them though.

Hey, its a challenge for me as well.

That is the purpose, really for Collage.

To stretch and build, to develop those Design skills past one’s current existing levels!!

 

 

 

Unification 

The secret to collage is to stay cool, calm and collected.  To maintain a sense of unity.  Cohesion.

All the pieces must, in the end, fit together like a well knit body.

Most often this is done,  one slow layer at a time.

 

 

Collage – Its a process of discovery.

A longer journey than we may have been prepared for, I imagine.

 

 

overlapping paper collage layers, debiriley.com
Overlapping Collage Layers, debiriley.com

 

 

Collage Materials Used

  • old reject paintings cut and  torn
  • gelli plate prints  discards
  • thin veils of tissue torn into shapes
  • acrylics, watercolors, copic markers
  • gel medium as glue
  • 24 x32″ canvas

 

 

Featured Collage Snippets

These 3 snippets I am featuring today, are just parts of a much larger collage I’m working on. I like these snippets.

But, at the moment the Whole of the art work is not  cohesive.

 

 

Zen

Piece by piece.  Tear by tear.   Day by day and week by week.

I might even begin to think of it as a bit of meditational art.

Its definitely, ‘contemplative.‘   A bit of Zen.

 

 

One Layer At a Time 

This collage is going to take some time – to become what it wants to be.

 

A  long journey for me in creative, overlapping layers.

One layer at a time.

 

 

sigh. no instant magic wand on this one.  But….

A lovely reason to stay Cool, Calm and Collaging!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Published by debiriley

The act of creation, in any media is a fascinating and magical process. I simply love to create. Expressing in color, line, tone, texture - as if, they were words upon a page. Creating a uniquely me, interpretation. Enjoy More of my "one-of-a-kind" expressive art at society6.com/debiriley and, redbubble.com/people/debijriley/shop

28 thoughts on “Cool, Calm and Collaging”

    1. thanks Charlie! I don’t do them often 🙂 very time – consuming. a bit like social media LOL eventually the whole thing will be unified and I’ll post that. in time. with grey hair. and a cane. 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

  4. I have been desiring to do collage for a very long time, I even have a book or two on the subject. I think it always felt so daunting, after your post I might give it a try. I truly love the fact that it can be meditative and Zen….I need that and it feels like something that would fit into fall and winter art making.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. thanks, it is really fun and creative. like a puzzle. it can be as frustrating too! challenging.
      but, it can be put away…for later. much later… lol sometimes the collage goes fast which is refreshing too. its just different headspace than wc. I Do enjoy it. makes me Think! 🙂
      you’ve seen my pinterest Collage board, so that gives a broad scope of …possibilities!!!

      Liked by 1 person

    1. thank YOU. I was thinking you’d enjoy collage as I was working on it Sharon.
      Its not finished, and may take quite some time yet. I only showed snippets 🙂 the rest looks like a dog’s breakfast.so it remains veiled. LOL

      Like

  7. These are great collages Debi! I love your choice of colors and textures beautiful! I don’t really do paper collages but I love to do digital collages let’s say, and create them with lots of images in layers and transparency! 😉

    Liked by 1 person

    1. thank you Carolina!
      dang… I’ve got to get ahold of ‘layers’ for digital dummies; think there’s such a book?! hehehe
      I’d love to be able to do digital collages….

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Ahhh a book? Maybe! It depend which software you use for your digital work not all of them can work layers, you can always search for tutorials. I work with Photoshop! 😉

        Liked by 1 person

  9. I love the color palette, and patterns. I’m immediately taken to the sea!

    I just introduced to Toni Only via Amdrew Seal https://thechangingpalette.com/2016/08/18/letting-the-brush-speak/

    There was a period in his life that he tore up his paintings and made collages out of them. I was impressed by that, and have started to save all my paintings, and drawings that don’t go well to try this one day.

    Your work today reminded me of Toni Onley too.

    Like

  10. I’m a big fan of collage works, I have a couple of books on it – this one guy has done amazing things on many different objects. Your pieces are beautiful works of patterns, textures and colors. Enjoyed this one Debi!

    Liked by 1 person

  12. i love looking at collages and taking the time to see where each piece speaks to the other. where other pieces attract same pieces…more like birds of the same feather gather together….where each piece resist and fight to be supreme. collages are unique, take a lot of pieces from the person piecing them together. this is awesome, Debi. in thime there will be cohesion, marriage, meaning. enjoy the ride. 🙂

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  13. I think this is beautiful, Debi, and nice to see you doing collage work! I find it very challenging too. My most recent collage turned me off art in general for many days. 🙂 I’m glad to hear you saying it’s challenging though because people here have made it look so easy that I thought that it actually would be. Haha.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. dear LL, happy and delighted to see your note! we all have differing art leanings…some for color, some bw pen, some for collage, or oils. And… you know too – that many images we see here, aren’t the original unique creations but duplicates. from www. from ebay etsy pinterest etc. SO, while some may make it look easy; there are reasons. Collage. IS A Challenge.. it is a great big puzzle, you have to think, your way out of. the one I’m working on – as a whole, looks like, well, I’ll just say a disjointed mess. I took “snippets” from it Laura. to post. hopefully, that was said! miss your 🙂 take it easy hugs 3d

      Liked by 1 person

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