Sometimes creating a collage can feel chaotic. There are so many options for subjects and media! This is a good thing, really, but it can be daunting. Editorial Director Jeannine Stein has some advice on how to keep the collage tamed. Enjoy! ~Cherie
Mixed-media art from the DVD Painted Collage in Layers |
What separates a good collage from a not-so-good collage? Cohesiveness. When making a collage I sometimes struggle with putting together disparate elements and various techniques and making the whole thing work. But when I watched Kari McKnight Holbrook’s Painted Collage in Layers video, something suddenly clicked. Explaining her approach to choosing pieces for the collage, she says she looks at her elements such as photographs, postcards, and letters, and makes up a story about them. Starting with a person, place, and thing, she imagines relationships between people in the photos, and then chooses other ephemera and materials accordingly.
That made so much sense–the best collages do tell a story, even if that story can be interpreted in countless ways. In her video Kari also demonstrates easy mixed-media techniques that have a big wow factor–foiling, adding bas-relief with modeling paste and stencils, and painting over that to create even more dimension. All of these elements enhance your story and your collage, making the piece so much more compelling. And Kari makes it all doable, taking you through every step at a perfect pace. Watch this video and see if your collages aren’t taken to the next level–I bet they will be. ~Jeannine