CREATE YOUR OWN NATURE PICTURE FROM TORN AND SELF COLORED PAPER SHAPES
LANDSCAPE COLLAGE
ABSTRACT AND MOODY
For the exhibition MAGNETIC NORTH. The works of the Canadian artists surrounding the so-called Group of Seven testify to an enthusiasm for powerful colors and simplified forms. The painting "Lake Superior Country" by A.Y. Jackson is dedicated to the atmospheric landscape of Northern Ontario. The artist composes it from shapes and colors. In doing so, he refrains from a realistic depiction of the small-scale structure of tree tops or the earth's surface. Jackson simplifies his painting and concentrates instead on the overall composition, the choice of colors, and the rendering of a particular mood.
THIS ARTISTIC PROCESS OF SIMPLIFYING OR REDUCING THE MOTIF IS ALSO CALLED ABSTRACTION
"Lake Superior Country" shows different rows of trees in the front, middle and background. The rock layers in shades of brown, purple and red are spread in an arc across the image. The clouds in the gray-blue sky are illuminated by the sun. It is probably the beginning of dusk on an autumn day that makes the land light up once again. The bright, mostly warm colors were applied with broad brushstrokes and are exaggerated in their intensity.
YOU NEED: PAPER FROM DRAWING PAD OR WATERCOLOR PAPER (DIN A4 OR A3), WATERCOLORS, WIDE BRUSH OR SPONGE, WATER, NEWSPRINT PAPER TO PUT UNDERNEATH, GLUE STICK OR SPRAY GLUE, PENCIL
Take a new sheet of paper the size of the colored papers as a base for your collage. Try out different positions of the torn shapes by laying them down and moving them around. Then glue the paper scraps and strips in the appropriate place on your background until the paper is shaped according to your image idea.
TIPS
- The background paper does not have to be completely covered with pieces of paper. Let the white background show through in some places, if you like.
- If you use thick paper or white cardboard for your self-colored paper scraps, a white edge can remain when tearing. This will make a great contrast to the colored paper layers on your collage, try it out!
INSTRUCTIONS
First, decide which colors you need. Take a sheet of paper and paint the diluted watercolor all over the paper, including the edges, preferably always in one direction. Use different shades of your chosen color. Mix them either already in the paint box or on the paper by placing the different shades next to each other. You can add more sheets in other colors until the color palette for your landscape collage is complete. Then let the colored papers dry for about half an hour.
Now take the first colored paper in both hands and place it between your thumb and index fingers. Make sure that your fingers are close together so that you can determine the direction in which the sheet tears. Tip: It's easier to make long strips of paper in portrait format! Now slowly tear along an imaginary line - you can also draw a thin pencil line beforehand. Let different shapes emerge: Paper strips can become layers of earth, triangles form large fir trees, and round shapes float across the sky as clouds.
