An Introduction to Mixed Media Collage
Collage is a form of art that involves taking pieces of various different images and arranging them into something new and different. Other than coloring with crayons, the art of cutting and pasting collages together is one of the earliest forms of art learned in schools today.
Mixed media collage involves adding additional dimensions to the simple cut and paste techniques of most collage. These mixed media techniques can include watercolors, acrylics, pencils, drawing, encaustic, assemblage, etc.
When you incorporate mixed media techniques into your collage art, you add a whole different dimension to the collage that wasn’t available before.
This is an example of a mixed media collage that I did (mostly) at work while I was working in a counseling call center. We had often went through long, slow periods and I would take my art books to work with me to fill in the gaps and still feel like I had made something of my time that day!
Petty Tyrant
I created this mixed media collage as a personal discovery piece during a time in my life when I was feeling particularly petulant. Is it 100% technically correct? Well, no, but that’s one of the wonderful things about mixed media collage – if you are every truly unhappy with something that you make, you can always add more to it later. You can even cut it up and reuse the pieces in a new collage that you are working on! Art recycling at its finest!
This piece is entitled Petty Tyrant. In it, I have incorporated images cut from various magazines I had available at the time. The background is done in a combination of watercolor crayons, colored pencils, rubber stamps, and markers. The text I added to the collage is from REM’s song “World Leader Pretend” and I think it flows with the image very well!
When I look at this piece the only thing that really stands out for me that I would improve upon would by my calligraphy skills. I love the way the body is constructed and gives a feel for being unstable, as though the Petty Tyrant could tumble and fall into a pile of nothing with the slightest push. But then we don’t always remember to knock over our petty tyrants, do we?
Making a mixed media collage is both visually stimulating and provides a lot of different tactile input as well. It does take a little patience, though, as adding layer upon layer often involves waiting for pieces to dry in between sittings. When I would take pieces like this to work with me, I would paint the pages at home with different washes of color and then add to them later when the colors on the page inspired me.
Many artists like to incorporate using different types of media as the foundation for their mixed media collages. Some may use canvas or paper, but many also use old windows, boxes, wood or pieces of old wood, fabric, and metal. Different surfaces require different preparation for collage so be prepared to learn lots of new techniques when venturing outside of the paper/canvas comfort zone!
What is Altered Art?
I love altered art, but it occurs to me that many people may have never heard of it before. So what is altered art?
To Alter – to make different in some particular, as size, style, course, or the like; modify
Altered art means a wide variety of things to different people. For me, altered art began with a set of playing cards, some old magazines to cut up, and some acrylic paints. While two-dimensional media like playing cards, place mats, and the like are a great way to move from collage into altered art, where it gets really interesting is when you start altering 3-dimensional objects.
Probably one of the most popular altered media is various types and sizes of boxes. From the small altoid tins to cigar box purses, moving altered art into the realm of assemblage becomes a form of collage sculpture.
Altered art journals and books are a wonderful way to express your own creative style. Small composition books make the perfect cover to alter for your first art journal. These small and inexpensive books are the perfect size to have at hand whenever you feel the need to write something down. The cover is sturdy enough to stand up to some serious painting and altering and can handle just about anything you would like to attach to it.
Many people begin sharing their art for the first time through altered playing cards, altered books, or artist trading cards. I’ve participated in a few of these round robins – we picked a theme for say ATCs and then sent in a certain number to the coordinator who sent us back one less. The coordinator has the benefit of grabbing one of everyone’s cards as she spends all the time and energy to coordinate the round robin and mail everything back out.
Round robins can be a great way to stimulate your creativity with altered art as everything you get back will have been made by someone else. I find that looking at other’s art work will often spur me into figuring out how someone did something I find unique, or their style may drive me to try out new styles for myself!
Altered tins and boxes make for wonderful little shrines or reliquaries for all the little sacred moments in life we don’t celebrate enough! I like to keep a little table in my room set aside for these altered treasures.
photo credit: CLBcreations