About Sketching

History of Collage

Collage developed as an art style in the early 20th century, after it was used by Picasso and Braque. Instead of creating an illusion of reality, they invented a new kind of reality, using textured and printed papers and simulated wood patterns on their drawings and paintings. The word collage is from the French verb coller, to paste or glue.

Techniques

Cutting and Fringing

When cutting, keep the scissors straight and turn only the paper. To cut out a shape from the interior of a piece of paper, either pierce the center of the section to be cut out and cut toward the shape’s border, or cut from the paper’s outside edge across to the shape’s interior section, repairing the cut in the paper with tape after the shape is cut out. To cut fringe, make a series of short, evenly spaced, parallel cuts from the outside edge inward.

Folding and Cutting

Draw a symmetrical shape on a piece of paper, fold the paper on the shape’s central axis, and cut out the shape following the drawn line on one side of the paper only. Hide any pencil lines that show by turning the shape over to use.

Drawing One, Cutting Two

Draw a shape on one piece of paper, then either fold the paper (with the entire shape still showing on one side) or place a second piece of paper against the first. Cut around the shape.

Tearing

Holding the paper with hands held close together, tear in short bursts, to maintain control. For a rough edge, wet the edge slightly, then tear away the wet part.

Fringing

Make short, parallel cuts close together along the entire length of the paper.

Curling

Roll the paper around a pencil, then unroll it and shape it into a tube, swirl, or curve.

Folding

Fold the paper in half (for a mountain or valley) or into thirds (for a zigzag) or more (for an accordion shape).

Scoring

To make a sharp fold line in the paper (a score line), use the back of a pair of scissors or the tip of a dull pencil and etch a line where you want the fold. Bend the paper along the line.

Maintenance of Materials

Keep a scrap box for storing and protecting collage papers.