Background

 

Collage is an art form in which the artist creates or takes a number of items and places them together within the boundaries of paper, frame or screen. The goal is to craft a message or feeling by the very patterns, content and often unexpected interaction

collage - collected definitions

 

#1 Pronounced As: klSzh, ko- [Fr.,=pasting], technique in art consisting of cutting and pasting natural or manufactured materials to a painted or unpainted surface-hence, a work of art in this medium. The art of collage was initiated in 1912 when Picasso pasted a section of commercially printed oilcloth to his cubist painting, Still Life with Chair Caning (Mus. of Modern Art, New York City). Collage elements appear in works by Gris, Braque, Malevich, Dove, and the futurist artists. A basic means of Dada and surrealist art, it was used by Arp, Schwitters, and Ernst. Collage is related to the newer art of assemblage, in which the traditional painted canvas has been abandoned in favor of the assembling of bits of material, which are sometimes additionally painted or carved.

#2 A picture or design created by adhering such basically flat elements as newspaper, wallpaper, printed text and illustrations, photographs, cloth, string, etc., to a flat surface, when the result becomes three-dimensional. Introduced by the Cubist artists, it was widely used by artists who followed, and is a familiar technique in contemporary art.

#3 A n artwork made by pasting together heterogeneous materials. The decisive and characteristic difference between the technique of collage (from French, coller,to paste) and painting is that in painting the visual impression is built up by composition of color and line, whereas in collage, bits of newspaper, labels, buttons, and chicken-wire, to mention only a few materials, are attached, ready-made, to the surface. The French painter Georges Braque and Spanish artist Pablo Picasso made collages for cubist works in the early 20th century. American pop art of the 1960s introduced the use of large objects, such as pieces of sheet metal, machine parts, parts from automobiles, and wooden rafters.

 

Collage Assignment:

Make a collage. Your collage will be created on a 11” x 14” Bristol. If you would like to create a larger collage than 11” x 14” you may do so as long as you use either a heavy weight Bristol, or a 140 lb watercolor paper, or heavier. You will have two weeks to complete your collage. However, you need to have your concept, thumbnails, 3 roughs and materials completed by by next week, Nov 14. Collages will be due and presented on November 21 at the beginning of class.

How to Begin:

·                     Look through design books from the library, or do a search from the internet to find examples of works of art (collage) you particularly enjoy. Why? What do you think makes these particular works of art effective? What about them appeals to you? Think about your responses to these questions as you work on your collage.

·                     Think about the Visual Elements discussed in class (line, shape/mass, light/value, color, texture/pattern, space, time/motion). How can you use these elements to make your collage visually appealing and effective?

·                     Think about the Principles of Design discussed in class (unity and variety, balance, emphasis and subordination/focal point, scale and proportion, rhythm). How have some successful artists incorporated these principles of design into their works of art to make them visually strong and appealing? How can you incorporate these principles of design into your collage?

Some suggestions for materials to use in your collage:

·                     Newspaper clippings

·                     Magazine illustrations

·                     Printed words

·                     Photographs

·                     Fabric

·                     Wallpaper

·                     Colored papers and/or Tissue paper

·                     Feathers, Sequins, Beads, Miscellaneous

·                     Digital Images

·                     Use your imagination!

Some artists who work(ed) in collage:

·                     Pablo Picasso (see page 175 in your text)

·                     Georges Braque

·                     Faith Ringgold

·                     Henri Matisse (page 15, page 87)

·                     Hannah Höch (page 218)

·                     Juane Quick-to-See (page 542)

·                     Romare Bearden (page 176)

·                     Kurt Schwitters

·                     Joseph Cornell (page 123)

·                     Miriam Schapiro (page 533)

·                     Robert Rauschenberg (page 195, page 524)

·                     David Hockney (page 119)

·                     Annette Messager (page 122)

·                     Fodé Camara (page 170)

·                     Jasper Johns (page 525)

·                     Kerry James Marshall (page 544)

·                     Robert Rauschenberg

·                     Evaluation

·                     Effort/Neatness

·                     Creativity

·                     Incorporation of Visual Elements and Principles of Design

·                     Overall Design

·                     Completion by Due Date