An About Face

My new friend, Andrée came over to join me in my studio for a collage play date yesterday afternoon.  This is how one of my collages turned out at the end of the day.  It was sort of pleasing, but lacking in meaning for me and without enough structure or form to be visually satisfying, I felt.  Of course, the activity was supposed to be about process rather than outcome, but...

today I couldn't  leave well enough alone and decided to go back in to yesterday's collage and push the boundaries, resulting in quite a different face looking back at me...

Can you see the king's face in the centre of the collage?  I think he's wearing sunglasses.  He's a cool king.  Maybe he's good King Wenceslas, so famous now from after having had a Christmas song named after him that he's taken to wearing shades when he goes out "incognito."  It would probably help if he left his crown at home, though.  You do see his crown, don't you?








Collage is a good creative release when you want to make something but you don't know quite what.  I find that it helps me get some "crap" out of the way after I've gone for an extended period without painting.  Loosens me up, let's me get messy, thumbs my nose at fear.  It's also an excellent means to tap into one's subconscious.  Nothing too deep going on here, though.  I think it's a reflection of the fact that we ended up playing cards after supper last night.  But then again, The Emperor is my soul card in Tarot (along with The Fool--no kidding!), so perhaps it's a self-portrait.  But isn't all the art one makes a portrait of self?

May the New Year bring much inspiration, creativity, exploration, humour, and abundance to us all--

and may we face up courageously to whatever challenges it throws in!