Collaging the new year

How do you go about expressing what you want in your new year? The workshop participants today seemed to have little trouble getting at it and going to it! Most came armed with an assortment of items to personalize their collage and were not too daunted by a blank canvas. I encouraged them to get some color down and not worry about what was going to come next. I shared a few techniques and styles for building in texture, color, photos, outline, wording, etc. and offered some books for inspiration. They only asked a few questions as they rummaged through magazines, paints, pastels, and papers in search of just the right thing.


Creating something within a group is a great way to have a focused time of work while connecting with others. Even if some are more skilled there is kind of an equalization that happens as each person is starting at square one and is validated and not judged in what they produce. The results are each unique and so fun to see. At the end, we took a little time to listen to one another's hopes for the new year as we shared as much as we wanted to about our collage.







Wow! I'm really proud of these collage artists for the gusto and guts they put into it and for being willing to share their stories with us. Way to go! I love seeing how art can be a catalyst for community and connection.