Collage

Guitar, after March 31, 1913
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973)
Museum of Modern Art (967.1979)
Image: moma.org
Cut-and-pasted paper and printed paper, charcoal, ink, and chalk on colored paper on board, 26 1/8 x 19 1/2"

Collage is a fascinating technique in art, one I've found myself drawn to in my own work. I intend to focus this week's art on collage, with an attempt to highlight a great range of work. From torn pieces of paper seemingly randomly arranged to obviously deliberate constructions, collage provides the viewer with a dimensional experience. Most of us have memories of making collages in art class as children, oftentimes limited to cut or torn pieces of construction paper, yet how these individual shapes and pieces are placed and arranged on a "canvas" can lead to a wold of wondrous possibilities, from abstraction to representation. Collage began as an artist's technique in the 20th century so bear with me on the century limits for this week.

I'll start the week off with one of the artist's that is debated to be the inventor of the technique, Picasso. Click on the title, Guitar, and get the chance to zoom in the image, a better way to see the lines and detail of the collage.

Website dedicated to the art of collage, collageart.org