Working with collage

I’ve always enjoyed paintings that combine collage with paint. (I’m thinking particularly of a favourite artist of mine - the surrealist painter Eileen Agar.) I love how sharp edges cut with scissors can contrast with painterly marks, and the layers that can be built up.

Having never used collage in my own work, I thought it was about time to investigate what it could offer me. I didn’t want to work with pre-printed collage paper as I wanted all the marks to be my own. Neither did I want to incorporate found materials and ephemera, though I do often enjoy seeing these finds incorporated in other people’s work.

I wanted my collage pieces to integrate effectively with my paint, so I made my own collage papers using colours harmonised with the palette I intended to use. Some were plain, some textured and patterned in a variety of ways. I used them to establish an underlying composition before layering with paint.

I’m a fan! Collage has brought a new dimension to my work, offering unexpected juxtapositions and bold compositional statements. I also love the cut edges that reveal themselves as subtle lines showing through successive layers of paint.