My two practice collages were made to compliment each other, though they are two different collages, so they do not make a scene when put together. However, I do like the way that they turned out and how they do seem to somewhat relate to each other. At first I had, had the idea of making them one scene together where the black and white faded into each other across the pages, but making them two separate collages seemed to be a better idea.
To make these two collages I used tissue paper for the background and pictures that I found online of flowers and butterflies. The sheet music in the back is from one of my favorite piano instrumentals, a song that I find especially beautiful, and so I wanted to include it in these pieces (the song is only two full pages long, so it worked out perfectly). Even if the pieces don't look too great or great an idle scene I'm still very happy with how they turned out and how they look simple yet pretty at the same time.
Reflection:
1) Did you use a source for inspiration, then combine it with your own ideas to make it original?
My trip to New York was the inspiration for this project. I used a lot of pictures of well known buildings that I visited in the background, as well as some buildings I didn't get to see, to give the artwork the feel of New York. I also cut out the streets from photos of New York to have winding through and around the buildings and structures. Another idea I had was to use the 'breaking news' titles and subtitle along the bottom just as would be seen in any news channel. For some reason I've always associated that kind of news broadcasting with New York. In any case I also used a map of New York in the background. It's the map that I actually used while in New York to navigate around, though I was pretty awful at the navigating, I think the map gave the piece a nice touch.
2) Did you consider how ideas would work before you tried them?
Before I glued anything down in order to actually make this project I thought out all the different layers I would include. First I had to decide on the absolute background, which I made a light blue tissue paper. I wanted this color because it reminded me both of the ocean and the sky. With this color the background can be interpreted as either or; though I see it more as the sky than the ocean. Then I planned the next layer which was the map background and the text clips. These two elements weren't supposed to be the things that really catch the eye, but they were supposed to add a certain touch to the piece to make it better; which I think they pulled off fairly well. The next layer was the buildings and structures of New York. These were supposed to be the main parts of my piece, but I think they could stand out a little more than they do. On top of those went the news banner and the letters that spell 'the big apple.' These are on top so they can be easily read over the structures, but not take away from the other elements. The final layer was made of the letters that spell 'New York City,' and I think that these letters turned out alright to make the piece come together. Each of these layers was planned out before I ever put anything down, and while the piece may look a bit jumbled I think that my planning worked out well overall.
3) Did you learn new techniques or processes as part of the work for this project?
Making collages was a completely new thing for me, so every part of this project was somewhat new. Of course, every kids glued a bunch of square photos to a paper, but even so it's nothing like what this was. This kind of collage making requires patience and layering and lots of planning. I learned how to use new materials, such as gel and gesso, and also learned new techniques like photo transferring. The things I learned were actually things I've genuinely become interested in, and while my projects may not have been the best examples of how to use those materials and processes I definitely want to learn how to use them better. I also learned a few techniques with tissue paper that I hadn't thought about. The color from tissue paper will bleed when gel is used over top of it and there are countless textures that can be created with countless materials. Collage making wasn't something I ever thought I'd be interested in, but with this project I've learned and become interested on quite a lot of things having to do with collages.
1) Did you use a source for inspiration, then combine it with your own ideas to make it original?
My trip to New York was the inspiration for this project. I used a lot of pictures of well known buildings that I visited in the background, as well as some buildings I didn't get to see, to give the artwork the feel of New York. I also cut out the streets from photos of New York to have winding through and around the buildings and structures. Another idea I had was to use the 'breaking news' titles and subtitle along the bottom just as would be seen in any news channel. For some reason I've always associated that kind of news broadcasting with New York. In any case I also used a map of New York in the background. It's the map that I actually used while in New York to navigate around, though I was pretty awful at the navigating, I think the map gave the piece a nice touch.
2) Did you consider how ideas would work before you tried them?
Before I glued anything down in order to actually make this project I thought out all the different layers I would include. First I had to decide on the absolute background, which I made a light blue tissue paper. I wanted this color because it reminded me both of the ocean and the sky. With this color the background can be interpreted as either or; though I see it more as the sky than the ocean. Then I planned the next layer which was the map background and the text clips. These two elements weren't supposed to be the things that really catch the eye, but they were supposed to add a certain touch to the piece to make it better; which I think they pulled off fairly well. The next layer was the buildings and structures of New York. These were supposed to be the main parts of my piece, but I think they could stand out a little more than they do. On top of those went the news banner and the letters that spell 'the big apple.' These are on top so they can be easily read over the structures, but not take away from the other elements. The final layer was made of the letters that spell 'New York City,' and I think that these letters turned out alright to make the piece come together. Each of these layers was planned out before I ever put anything down, and while the piece may look a bit jumbled I think that my planning worked out well overall.
3) Did you learn new techniques or processes as part of the work for this project?
Making collages was a completely new thing for me, so every part of this project was somewhat new. Of course, every kids glued a bunch of square photos to a paper, but even so it's nothing like what this was. This kind of collage making requires patience and layering and lots of planning. I learned how to use new materials, such as gel and gesso, and also learned new techniques like photo transferring. The things I learned were actually things I've genuinely become interested in, and while my projects may not have been the best examples of how to use those materials and processes I definitely want to learn how to use them better. I also learned a few techniques with tissue paper that I hadn't thought about. The color from tissue paper will bleed when gel is used over top of it and there are countless textures that can be created with countless materials. Collage making wasn't something I ever thought I'd be interested in, but with this project I've learned and become interested on quite a lot of things having to do with collages.