the making of this series was much more light hearted than it looks. here’s how i did it: i glued together one piece of black to one piece of white paper to make six 11×14 backgrounds. then i taped my two-toned backgrounds to my work table. i put out a big gob of white paint and big gob of black paint. then i rolled a pizza cutting wheel through the paint and then onto my backgrounds over and over. the black and white may give the images a hint of solemnity. but i was there while they were created, and i’m telling you it was pure joy.
STILL collage project 2017 | Week 20 (mary jo hoffman)
motherwell inspired collage series
this collage series was inspired by the collages of artist robert motherwell. i was actually looking into the works of his wife, the artist helen frankenthaler, when i came across robert’s collages. we all know that really good collage can often look haphazard and almost accidental, and yet it is often exactingly assembled. and even though i know this in my heart of hearts, i still fell for the illusion of simplicity in motherwell’s early collages. i thought o myself ‘i want to try my hand at this’. well, let me tell you, these collages in this series we’re anything but casual and haphazard.
i will have to return to helen’s color staining of unprimed canvases for inspiration at another time.
STILL collage project 2017 | Week 19 (mary jo hoffman)
vellum cut-outs collage series
i had a notion of making some collages that looked like patch-worked quilt using transparent papers. when my vellum paper showed up, the colors were so citrusy and tropical that they didn’t fit my original idea. so, as the expression goes…when life give you lemons, make lemonade.
STILL collage project 2017 | Week 18 (mary jo hoffman)
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Hello Mary Joe, I am fascinated by your work. I discovered you recently by a magazine mention, that I currently do not have with me. I love them all. I just have a question on the collage of foliage with the paper: are they glued down or this work sort of ephemeral and you could use the same pieces to make several compositions? Anyway, very inspirational and I hope to get my own blog started some day soon! Best Regards, Tracy
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primary colors collage series
this weekly collage challenge was intended to be a place of experimentation and play. as i was brand new to collage, i could argue it has all been experimentation. and yet, as i look back over the past many weeks i see that although i may be playing with shape and form, i have been keeping with my preferred palette of secondary and tertiary colors. so, this week i challenged myself to use the three primary colors and back. influences from matisse, mondrian, and calder are easily identifiable.
STILL collage project 2017 | Week 17 (mary jo hoffman)
this collage series was inspired by the landscapes of rural southern france.
STILL collage project 2017 | Week 16 (mary jo hoffman)
