For a bit of background, collage is usually defined by the application of paper in a thoughtful way to a substrate (what the art is created on- paper, cardboard, wood, etc.). Collage is NOT the same as decoupage. Decoupage traditionally covers the surface of any object, without a lot of artistic thought (though I am not saying it is not creative). Collage is an artistic medium. I like to think of it as the next step after decoupage.
I really enjoyed learning Nelson's approach to collage, and the idea of the "paper painting." She truly treats the application of paper to her pieces like painting, and achieves a very unique effect. Everyone at the workshop achieved different results in their pieces, and I believe everyone was successful. Unfortunately, I forgot my phone, so I don't have any images of the other teachers' pieces, just mine.
For this post I want to outline the basic steps in this process. I don't claim to have pioneered this, but want to share a student-friendly version of the process.
As with any project, students should start with an image and sketch it out. We sketched directly onto our substrate, in the teachers' case, a piece of wood. For students, you can use almost anything. We were informed that cardboard was good, and matboard could also work, but both will warp due to the amount of media used in the pieces.
(the original image: my dog, Skipper and the sketch on the wooden board)
(Note: I have heard that once the front is dry (on any student work, not just paper paintings) you can brush glue on the back and let it dry, and it will straighten out some. I have not personally tried this, so I can't guarantee it, but if anyone does try it before I do, let me know how it turns out! courtneypla [at] gmail [dot] com.)
It is a good idea for students to create an under-painting of their piece. (In this case, you could have them use a past painting assignment, or have them create a new painting.) The under-painting gives them an idea of where their colors will be laid when they start working with the papers. These under-paintings should be a loose quality: make sure students aren't overworking them, otherwise they might be timid about putting the paper over top.
(Here is my underpainting. I used just enough color/ value to indicate where I want the paper-painted tones to go)
The next step is preparing the paper for the final pieces. Elizabeth informed us that she does this in large "batches" of every color, giving thought to colors that will largely be used in the piece while also creating a full spectrum. The creation of the painted paper is a lot of fun, but followed some basic guidelines:
- Never use watercolors to paint your paper- they will bleed when coated (Test tempera and other water-soluble paints for bleeding before use).
- Use Acrylic paints to paint the paper. They will not bleed.
- Use stamps to create tone-on-tone texture effects. The benefits: tone-on-tone keeps the paper interesting, but not distracting. (You could have students make eraser stamps in a lesson before this, and have those to use for other projects like this.)
- Make every color you can!
- Use all different kinds of papers. Some of my favorites? Maps, anything with handwriting on it, old homework, book pages (yes, you will have to destroy books), art papers, any papers in need of recycling, paper grocery bags.
Once the papers are dry, they should be torn into smallish pieces, and sorted by color. (I would separate by color and set up a group of bags for each table with K-8; high schoolers can either make their own and trade with friends, or work with one communal supply.) Now the students are ready to start Part II: Paper Painting!
Stay tuned for Paper Painting, Part II!
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