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hogret — Collage Tutorial: Background
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Published: 2011-05-22 11:08:24 +0000 UTC; Views: 12895; Favourites: 83; Downloads: 262
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Description
A journey though creating a collage background.Starting with a simple text page and adding layers and layers of finishes.
This is not intended for you to replicate, as you will undoubtedly have your own inspirations and aesthetic preferences, but I was interested in tracking my own process.
It is worth remembering that there will have to be a sequence in the media you apply.
Ink (or watercolor paint) has to go first because it absorbs into raw paper.
If you want to sketch with pencils or marker pen, you would need to do that next, because they don't adhere too well to acrylic glazes.
Acrylic paint goes next, and last go oil-based media.
You need to leave beeswax until pretty much the last step, although you can still apply oil pastels over it.
Ink stamping can happen anytime up until you use an oil-based medium.
Finished collage:
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Comments: 41
so where is part two? inquiring minds want to know...
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*assumes Colonel Klink voice* Zat is unacceptable! Off to work with you! Schnell, schnell!
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It amazes me that out of all my art forms collage is really one I over look. I keep wanting to do it, and now have a project planned.... it is a large one- 24x36 canvas... trees, organic colorings etc... I have been searching for a 'how to' and yours came up on pinterest! I actually have an account both places, so I ran right over! I <3 what you have done with this! Thank you for the tutorial as well, makes this make so much more sense!
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Cool! I hope you have lots of fun on your huge canvas!
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I had a lot of fun 
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The most important thing is to play and not to stress about the end result. Often, "mistakes" (eg paint spills, smudged stamps) work out fabulous in the end. And you can always slap more paper over ugly bits, or tear strips off and paint or ink over the bald patches that result. Collage is so forgiving!
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Love this, and the result. What were you using as an icon, or whatever, to keep you on the rich, Russian track? Or were you simply conjuring from an image in your head? At times, if I am going for a look (say, a 1930s feel), I'll grab a magazine of that vintage to steer me clear of mis-steps before I make them. I'm enjoying the white shapes in the upper right corner. As you have instructed us previously, that is where the eye doth tend to wander. Well done piece. Bring on the second installment!
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All in my head, I assure you.
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I spash turquoise on everything every since you got me hooked....
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Amaaaaaaaaazing tutorial! THanks a lot for that! ( *¬*)
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You're welcome ... hope it's useful.
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See my note to mcdermid also on this page - you might like to get an iron that you can use for heat transfers at the same time.
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Proper encaustic is wax blended with resin, and I can't find that here, so I suppose my technique is more of a faux encaustic.
I haven't tried block printing inks - may work better. The pigment inks do tend to go a bit smeary, and they don't like sticking to glazes much.
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Oh so tempting, but eek expensive. Particularly if you have one go at it, hate it, and then shelve it. This is where it would be nice to have a collaborative studio, where we could invest in new mediums together, and all have a try!
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Audrey, I think it's time we moved across the world! Love your collaborative studio idea.
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It would be the coolest thing. Who's the geographical wiz here? What would be the midpoint between east coast, west coast, mid-atlantic states, the south, South Africa, Germany, Lebanon....
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Ooo Very nice! Thank you for sharing! I should get some beeswax to try out, I've heard good things!
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Beeswax gives a wonderful finish and makes your collage smell of warmed honey!
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I buy beeswax in solid bar form,and shave bits off of it with a vegetable peeler. Scatter the pieces evenly over the collage,and then iron over them so that the wax melts into the paper. (I have a small quilting iron, but a household iron will work too, provided it's not a steam iron, and - of course - you can't use it for the laundry afterwards!) I've tried painting with melted wax, but it just doesn't work for me.
Acrylic glazes are a tinge of coloured acrylic paint of your choice, mixed with a good dollop of acrylic gloss glaze medium. Proportions depend on how intense you want the colour. The more glaze medium you use, the more transparent the colour. You can layer glazes over each other (letting each coat dry first, obviously) to build up translucency and depth.
Hope this helps!
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You need to make contact and iron the beeswax into the paper. A heatgun works if you want to keep your distance!
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A heat gun is useful if you want to do resin work, or embossed stamping because you will use it for those too.
Otherwise a heat transfer tool is a good buy, because you can use it for wax and heat transfers (one available at dickblick - [link] ).
Info on heat transfer technique is here [link]
But a small travelling iron is probably easiest to get hold of, and works fine!
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If you iron the beeswax onto the collage through kitchen paper the iron stays fairly clean.
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