Ekphrastic tribute to Kurt Vonnegut

Given the fact that "Slaugterhouse 5" had such a big influence on me, I decided to create an ekphrastic collage in tribute to Kurt Vonnegut. My idea was really triggered by my coming across the "Blazing inferno of flaming corpses" text from a trashy pulp magazine of "true crime". I have plenty of German text materials in my workspace and I figured I could find an appropriate war scene to include. The "History of the World" book binding was a valuable addition as well, I think. The problem was trying to get some slaughterhouse images. I had in mind what I wanted; I just wasn't sure where I might get those elements. Of course friends had suggested getting something from E-Bay or from "the internet". But I am weirdly stubborn about procuring elements in that way. It's weird; it's a self-imposed restriction and I can't really explain why getting materials from garage sales or auctions feels more "real" for me. But that's what I do. So you can probably guess how uber-excited I was when I came across a meat curing book when I was helping my friend clean out his mother's house! He and his wife know that I am weird (quirky), but I think I even surprised them when I expressed SO much excitement about the meat curing book. SO here's the finished product! Enjoy!

The Memory Project

I am the Advisor for the Art Club at Utica College. One of the students came across "The Memory Project" on the web (see www.memoryproject.org). This is an initiative whereby disadvantaged children get a "portrait" of themselves drawn or painted by various artists (or art students) around the world. The students are VERY excited to be part of this project, as am I! Of course, there is a fee for doing this (which I told the students I would cover). What a great idea! Here is the photo of the child for whom I will do a portraiture collage. It'll be my first attempt at a representative portrait. I have some ideas in my head and I hope that the child will appreciate a collage (i.e., rather than a painting or drawing). It should be rather unique, I suppose. I will post the finished product when I complete it (not due until February... but I'm ready to get started). I've obscured the eyes as, understandably, we are not suppose to identify the children on the web.

Collaborative collage diptych

My cousin Dan Sanders and I have finished our collaborative collage project. We both started with the Queen Elizabeth element and did not show each other what we were doing until we were both finished (I showed the original "kernel" photo in an earlier post). So here's the finished product! We've entitled it "Two Queens". Dan works digitally until he has identified the elements he wants. Then he prints those elements and creates the composition. I consider myself an "analog collagist" and thus only use printed material from magazines and such. This piece will be on display at my upcoming two-person exhibit at The Black Gryphon Restaurant in Elizabethtown, PA (Dec. through March). Enjoy!

Spreading the "wealth"

I am teaching a creativity course this semester at Utica College. I convinced the students in the class to come in at 8:00 instead of 8:30 a.m. so that we could have a little extra time to spend on making collages.  I think that they really liked the activity and they created some interesting collages. Here are a few samples and a great photo of the entire class showing off their works! Enjoy!

for fun

Here are a couple pieces I did "for fun" (i.e., again not putting too much pressure on myself to create a "masterpiece"). The owl piece I will give to a friend for Christmas. He has bought several of my pieces and I thought I'd give him a "freebie". He's an owl image/object collector; so he should like this one. The other piece I put together from some interesting elements I had lying around for a while. What's interesting is that my wife said that she liked it; but that it was a somewhat "predictable" kind of an image for me. I suppose it's been good for me to explore a little bit these days. Enjoy!

To The Power of N... again

Joel Lambeth has posted the latest artwork in the great Power of N project. Check out great works by prominent collagists at
http://www.tothepowerofn.joellambeth.com
Enjoy!

Why?

Why do I do the things I do? Well, I mean... of course I am referring to collage... and more specifically the compositions I create. This weekend I spent some quality time in my workspace and in my creative space. I was perusing some old magazines (always a good strategy for generating ideas and getting inspired). I came across one specific issue of LIFE magazine from the late 60s (1967, I believe) which included a picture of a Chinese civilian being beaten by a police officer. In the 1960s and 70s the imagery which could be found in popular press articles in magazines like LIFE and LOOK and TIME was sometimes quite graphic. I wonder how the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan would have been perceived differently if that were the case today. Anyway... I was drawn to this image as a potential collage element. Later on in the same issue I came across a full-page advertisement for Hunt's catsup. As some of you know, I really like images of cross-sections of tomatoes. The juxtaposition of the man being beaten with the tomato background I found compelling. Why? I really don't know. The image is certainly edgy (to say the least). In a way, I feel that it is a little Ray Johnson-y (and perhaps reminiscent of Warhol's "Disaster" series). As I was working with the composition, I realized that there are a couple of ways to crop the image. I originally thought that I would crop the text of the advertisement out of the composition. BUT, as it turns out, the text is really interesting in terms of an additional juxtapositional element. I really don't have ANYTHING against Hunt's catsup (or any other Hunt's product) and I would hate to inadvertently convey something negative about Hunt's (which might be inevitable to a viewer). I am leaning toward not "causing trouble" by leaving the text in as part of the composition. Of course then I start feeling uncomfortable that I am self-censoring (no good for an artist). I am posting both versions to illustrate my "dilemma". Believe me, I am fully aware that this composition is edgy on a number of levels... but this is what has been occupying my time this evening; and I thought someone might find the process interesting artistically (if not aesthetically). There's more to this story as well; and I will post more soon. Enjoy?