WHAT IS A COLLAGE?

The term collage derives from the French term papiers collés (or découpage), used to describe techniques of pasting paper cut-outs onto various surfaces. It was first used as an artist’s technique in the early twentieth century.

Collage can also include other media such as painting and drawing, and contain three-dimensional elements.

Collage allows the opening up of conscious, which is very direct… its also a way of looking at what you are consuming all the time – John Stezaker

Source: Art Term: Collage (Tate of London)

Martha Rosler

Richard Hamilton

Michelle Leftheris

Andrea Carlson

Brea Souders

Lorna Simpson

Linder Sterling

📼 Arturo Herrera (from min 25:57 to 30:40)

WORK

•  Brainstorm an issue that interests you and utilize this to inform your images and design.

• Gather 5 images using the Creative Commons search tool.

• Using non-destructively tools from Photoshop, start to select, cut and put together the elements of your photomontage,

Resources

Photoshop 2024 Essential Training 🎞️

Ch. 9 - Working with layers (1,2)

Ch. 10 - Making Selections (1, 2, 3)

Ch. 13 - Blend Mode Essentials (1, 2) 

Homework #4

Social Campaign: this is a two-part design assignment – the first part is to create a photomontage. (the second part, homework 5, is to add text and vector elements as design components to create a socially engaged advertisement).

Part 1 due by end of Lab Fri 10/20.

Reading: “No one’s ready for this” by Sarah Jeong, available on Blackboard or online, reflections due 9/27.

Info:

As we saw in the Week 4 lecture, photomontage can be used to create political commentary, cultural critique, express the subconscious or create self-portraits. 

For this assignment, create two photomontages that use masking and at least one blending mode to present a message. Brainstorm a political, social, or ecological issue that interests you and utilize this issue to inform your images and design.

Each photomontage should combine at least three images; however, you may want to do many more. Make precise selections and use masking to combine different elements of your image. 

Like the images we saw in class, your photomontage should have a concept that drives the selection and juxtapositions of images. Review the discussion of blending modes in the lecture and consider how you may use blending techniques creatively. In addition, consider the role of scale, rhythm and texture in your composition. In your pieces, try to use as many images as possible that you have shot, or that are in the public domain; one resource is Wikimedia Commons. 

Both of your finished images should be 5”x7” and posted on your website as jpg images. 

Please also include a screenshot of both of your PSD working files including an expanded view of your layers panel. 

On your website write a two-paragraph explanation of the concepts you are exploring and what techniques you employed to achieve the results. Describe which blending mode(s) you chose and why. Make sure to also discuss the source of your images, whether are they from online, photos you shot, or some other source.