I have been looking at some interesting art lately, which has revved me up to get out and make something. Collage is my go to for quick work that encourages me to bang something out without thinking too much about it.

I try to follow the principle of not stopping at making one collage, or only one of anything, when I am exploring new ideas. I managed three collages before I ran out of time to complete anymore.

Using paint to isolate the images was inspired by seeing some of the 19th century photographs from the collection of the Australian Museum, currently on display in Sydney. Many of the images on the photographs have white paint surrounding them. This was to facilitate focussing on the specimen. If you look at the final image you can see how some of this paint has deteriorated over time, resulting in some very artistic marks.

I was undecided about painting around these last collages. But I probably should to at least unify it with the other two works.

OK, I took my own advice.

Finally, here is a photo of the back cover of the catalogue for the exhibition Capturing Nature. It’s well worth a visit if you are in the area.