Watercolor paper collage

Don’t throw out that old watercolor! As many watercolorists, I have a large portfolio of old discards and unfinished paintings. I wait for the right moment to breathe new life into them, however sometimes that moment never comes.

One day, I decided to sort through my stash and tear apart each painting, making piles of various color values. I made a pile of light, medium and dark greens, and then reds, blues and a host of others. Each pile was placed in a labeled envelope.

I recently taught a class on loose watercolor flower painting, I decided to try a gardenia watercolor I painted for my students. After I studied the shapes of the leaves and petals, I began to tear paper. I was more concerned with values and shapes, then trying to reproduce the exact color. I was after a more dramatic effect.

I prefer collage to begin with the tearing process along with arranging shapes, is so much fun. When you are having fun, the creative process just flows. Tearing paper rather than cutting with scissors, produces a more interesting edge.

I arranged my petal and leaf shapes on off white paper, and then I tried other background colors to see what worked best. Experimenting with different backgrounds is important before you glue down your final composition. I use a good brand glue stick, however liquid glue works just as well.

     To create more drama, I used colored pencils to outline some shapes or added pencil shading to strengthen the color. I found scrapbooking paper to be an advantage for creating various effects. For example, I cut out using a scissors for variety, a watering can from scrapbooking paper to hold my torn paper begonias.

There is no limit to what subject matter can be used. Sometimes just arranging a few paper shapes will bring forth a new idea or studying a photo.

Just remember to have fun!

By Pat Rayman, Paint Box Section, HowDoIt dept.