Cut And Paste

In between paintings or drawings--especially when I have to wait for paint to dry--I find that making collages helps keep me in orbit. If I don't keep focus, I drift. Drifters like me rely on concentration techniques (not always a guarantee for success) to keep us anchored into the task at hand. I don't like to think about a composition for too long so I do look forward to some respite, but I also know that I have to remain within the particular head space from which the composition came from. Basically, I have to stay "active", or I risk loosing touch of my creative flow.

Collage is a great exercise for me. I absolutely love it. It has a soothing effect, and keeps me generating ideas as I mindlessly cut and paste bits of magazine paper together. The results are always satisfying, and the process as efficient as it can get. They can become incredibly sophisticated as well. One my favorite artists who delved into some serious collaging techniques with prints and cut paper is Frank Stella.

Frank Stella, detail, "Severinda," mixed media on Fiberglas, 1995