Big possibilities

"Brilliant" and "Verdant giclees. © 2011, Janice McDonald.

I'm beginning to experiment with enlarging selected collages for reproduction as giclee prints. Here is a photo of the first two giclees that have sold, now residing in a Houston living room. I was delighted to see how well they translated from the original collages, "Brilliant" and "Verdant," and how strong the composition remains at this larger scale.

The possibilities are exciting, people who have seen them have been quite receptive, and I hope that it may allow my work to be enjoyed more widely. The collage imagery can be printed onto heavyweight watercolor paper at numerous sizes -- or onto canvas. The above giclees are 30 x 30" with deckled edges and an image area of 26 x 26," mounted in a slightly larger frame.

Tremendous thanks to uber-generous artist Ken Elliott for the encouragement to give this a try -- and to the client for purchasing the giclees and sending along the photos!

Contemporary collage "changing like a chameleon..."

"One of the exciting things about collage is its primary use of discarded paper media which ultimately keeps it in motion, constantly changing like a chameleon. A quick look at the diversity of styles, concepts and technique found in contemporary collage proves it’s moved well beyond simply cut paper and glue.

I suspect many artists find it alluring for not only its immediacy but its unique and inherent nature to reinvent the familiar into something mysteriously new. Collage also has a long history of integrating itself in to political and cultural movements so it seems natural there’s a collage revival happening in these uncertain times."

— from an interview with "All That Remains" exhibition curator Charles Wilkin, posted to the Hyperallergic blog by Hrag Vartanian.

I couldn't agree more with the thoughts expressed in the interview. Opportunities to look at collage are increasing in galleries, museums -- and wonderfully, also online. 

Collage works from the "All That Remains" show are available for viewing here. The exhibition is an international one, curated by Wilkin, and on view at Picture Farm in Brooklyn, New York through November 19, 2011.

To peruse even more collage, consider visiting the 27th Annual National Collage Society exhibition site, viewable online here. (I have one in there somewhere...)

Image above, included for its chameleon-like coloration, is: "Composure," collage on paper, 10 x 8." © 2001, Janice McDonald.

The beauty of raw materials

I'm working on an idea for a collage that will involve a lot of kraft/corrugated papers so I spent part of the day deconstructing a large Milk Bone® Dog Biscuit box. Taking it apart, then peeling apart the layers to the degree that I can, yielded a gorgeous stack of curling papers to use as raw materials. All in a day's work! (And, as a bonus, here's a photo of my studio companion who so graciously donated the empty box.)

Juried into National Collage Society exhibition

"Remembrance," paper collage on wood panel, 10 x 10 x 1." © 2011, Janice McDonald.

Hooray! I was pleased to learn that my collage, "Remembrance," has been juried into the 27th Annual National Collage Society Exhibition.

The exhibit will be viewable online from November 1, 2011 to October 31, 2012. When I have a link to the exhibition site, I'll be back to post it here. It's always a good survey of collagists, methods, and approaches. (Happily, I'm on a roll... my work was also included in last year's exhibition.)

NOTE (added 11.1.11): The 2011 exhibition is now viewable here.