Final touches: collage commission 4

Getting the roots to align well from one panel to another was challenging. They needed to intertwine and anchor the composition. Each root was put down separately so the process was additive. I ripped lots of curving pieces (many of which were rejected) before I got the look I wanted.I also added ripped rounds of rice paper and a metallic silver paper to punctuate the roots and symbolize the energy of nutrients and water droplets. The placement of each little element was carefully considered, piece after piece. The metallic paper adds just a bit of sparkle but is hard to photograph, appearing whiter than it looks in person.Once I thought that I was close-to-done, I still didn't have an adequate place to hang the four pieces together. So they were evaluated in this carefully stacked position multiple times as I tweaked details.Eventually, they were deemed finished and received multiple coats of protective varnish before being carefully wrapped for delivery. 

Stages along the way: collage commission 3, details

 Here's the collage in progress as I begin to lay in the root structure and detail the meadow and tree bases with layers of paper.I'm using rice paper for the root structures for its transparency so the colors from below show through somewhat. I'm working with magazine color areas for the plant details... and the patterns from inside of security envelopes for the aspen bark striations!Ran across a wonderful quote while I was in the midst of this work... funny how that happens..."Our lives are like islands in the sea, or like trees in the forest. The maple and the pine may whisper to each other with their leaves... But the trees also commingle their roots in the darkness underground, and the islands also hang together through the ocean's bottom."—William James, psychologist and philosopher (1842-1910)Lovely thoughts.  

Stages along the way: collage commission 2

As you can see, I'm contining to add big areas of color via chunks of paper to get the background filled in so I can work into the piece with further detail.This collage is so big that I'm incorporating sheets of kraft, rice, and wrapping paper -- along with the usual found and repurposed papers. If I used my typical materials (the size of a typical magazine page or smaller), the overall effect would be far more busy and kinetic than what I envision. I need an interesting, but simple, band of layers upon which I can develop the root structure of the aspen grove.Can you tell that I have to stand on a stepladder and hold my camera over my head to get this all in??!! That's why these process images are a bit skewed... I'm working on a counter height table and don't really have any other way to see the whole image assembled!

"Rooted together" commission in progress 4.29.13

Here's an update... I'm working away on getting the big areas of color applied so that I can go back with more papers to represent the details: aspen trees, undergrowth, and roots.I also was videotaped and interviewed while working today to document the development of the collage. The hospital will have QR codes near each commissioned artwork so that the creative process can be seen by interested viewers as part of a virtual art tour. I responded to numerous questions and rambled away... here's hoping it will be both insightful and a good diversion for those who may watch it online while in the surgical waiting area!