Julien Pacaud

I find it really exciting to run across an artist’s work that seems to fly in the face of something that I happen to be working through in my own collages, yet is still completely successful.


Notahobbytool, digital collage, 2007

Julien Pacaud‘s collages do that for me. Lately I’ve been concentrating on the idea of transforming the images I’m using by heavily altering and dissecting them. However, in Julien’s pieces the images remain for the most part intact and presented realistically but very much out of context.

Julien Pacaud is an illustrator based out of Paris, France. He achieves a classical surrealist strangeness in these aptly named “perpendicular dreams“. The stylishly vintage figures in these bizarre landscapes are both emotionally disengaged and savagely dramatic wrapped up in their peculiar narratives. I love the colors used; some are full of washed out chalky grays, while others are drenched in an over saturated, hand colored effect. His current collages follow an equally bizarre and amusing storyline full of fantasy intrigue and suspense.


Episode 9 - The second assassination attempt, digital collage, 2008


Autoroute Zero, digital collage, 2007

Definitely check out his website there‘s some cool links and something called ‘automatic art‘ that is rather interesting. Also, his portfolio of commercial work is equally as engrossing.
julienpacaud.com
Julien Pacaud on etsy.com

Collage and Prints II

Nudes 3, etching, collage, digital print on plexiglas, 24" x 24" x 2"
WHY do I keep posting about collage and prints?
Because this past weekend I attended the Philadelpia Academy of Arts Graduate art show. I was exposed to several unique and upcoming artists and really I enjoyed the show. There was a lack of collage represented at this show, however there were a few mixed media pieces that caught my eye. One in particular had used an etching and collage along with it. I liked the depth of the etching and the floating of the collage elements. There was also another artist--the one that I did notice doing collage, and they used glass windows as the frame, and collaged underneath the glass. It was a great foil for the collages, and it was really interesting when there was paint smeared on the glass on top of the collage work. It made for a really nice opaque look. I was inspired to look more into the printing aspect when it comes to my work. I have a gocco printer for screen printing and it sits forlorn in the corner.

Today I discovered a Spanish artist, Cristina Morono on the Manhattan Arts site, who had some beautiful etchings combined with collage and plexiglas. These are really nice pieces. I spent some time on her website looking thru her various serie's.
I would love to hear about other collage artists that are using prints in their work. There are so many ways to do this....

Collage and the use of Prints

I want to publicly and more formally welcome Daniel aboard the clearinghouse! I am excited for the change and a chance for new perspective. He is involved with collage as a medium, and I look forward to reading his posts. Now some of the pressure for this is off of me and maybe it will become a pleasure again instead of a burden. Thank you Daniel!

I discovered the work of Josh Bernstein today on Art Fag City, a reputable art blog. His work just pulled me right in. At first I was mesmerized by the block print work, Depressa Resurgit. It is a massive 12" x 72" piece utilizing blockprints, maple and photography. I feel organic nouveau influences in this piece and i love it. I have been looking more and more at prints and how various artists use prints in their work. This unusual implementation of the print over the photo really is effective. Me like. I do have a question however. It appears as tho this is a collage on wood, using blockprints that were cut and photographs in a background. I wonder why this isn't called "collage", and instead the artist lists the ingredients. ??? I may be completely wrong, without seeing it up close and observing texture it's hard to say.


Depressa Resurgit, 2008 12" x 72" blockprints, maple and photographs

The talented Robert Rauschenberg was famous for using prints in his work and I really like the idea of it. I personally am not so keen on the problem that is created by using multitudes of rectangular shapes. This piece by Bernstein seems to solve that by the use of a cut print. Nice work!


Retroactive 1 (1964). A large press photograph of John F. Kennedy speaking at a televised news conference was the source for this screen print on canvas. He juxtaposed the image of Kennedy with another photo silkscreen of a parachuting astronaut. (courtesy of warhol.org)

My Collage Heroes

I thought I should introduce myself. Hello, I'm Daniel and I volunteered to to become a blog contributor here at The Collage Clearinghouse. I thought I'd start by listing my three biggest collage heroes of all time. (I would say 'influences' but I feel influenced by all the art I see everyday, and so 'hero' sounds more appropriate.)

Number one for me would have to be San Francisco painter/collage artist, Jess Collins(1923-2004). I am always blown away by Jess' densely packed, rich, inventive collages; you can just get lost in them. His process was also fascinating, working in several different modes he called past-ups, translations, necro-facts, and salvages. Some of his pieces where he layers puzzles in and out are absolutely jaw dropping.





I've seen some great monographs of Jess' work. Here's two on amazon.com:
Jess: To and From the Printed Page
Jess, a Grand Collage, 1951-1993
and here's a couple online articles. hackettfreedman.com sfgate.com


Next for me is Dada artist Hannah Höch (1889-1978). I really love what she did with the human form, and the deceptively simple feel of her pieces. Her work is full of political and social commentary, new forms of beauty and feminism. There's something about her collages that feel free and airy and at the same time important and powerful.





Some books on Hannah Höch on amazon:
Cut with the Kitchen Knife: The Weimar Photomontages of Hannah Hoch
The Photomontages of Hannah Hoch


Next, I would say for me is New York collage/assemblage artist, Joseph Cornell (1903–1972). I love his whimsy and curiosity. He seemed to be enamored by certain subjects and explored them with a fantastic fascination. His work is so playful and beautiful, colorful and nostalgic. To me his work is less about transforming an image or juxtaposing ideas but about concentrating on an idea celebrating it.





Books on Cornell on amazon.com:
Joseph Cornell: Navigating the Imagination
Joseph Cornell: Master of Dreams


I know these aren't exactly unknown names in art history but they've definitely shaped my love of the medium of collage so I thought I'd share my appreciation. There's many other artists I could put in this same category, but these three come up so often for me when thinking about art and collage they top the list.
Feel free to leave comments on your thoughts on these three artists or about your own collage heroes.

Suggestions and Solutions

I found myself contemplating the feedback of my previous post over these past few days. Some people were kind enough to send their well wishes, others sent me private emails that explained some of the flaws in the clearinghouse. I am grateful to any and all that read, comment, email, or participate! Thank you. There were some suggestions that I feel were quite appropriate and I am going to attempt to pull this together.

Initially I had started this blog as a service to myself, but since the clearinghouse is now one and a half years old, it has grown and the idea behind it is changing. I really want this blog to succeed as a resource for every (collage) artist, not just for me. I feel as tho no matter what I do, the burden is pretty heavy. In order to properly create flow of content, I believe I need some help. I have seen some really great successful group blogs, Scrapiteria is one. The multi-blogger format is already proven, it works. I really like the idea of enlisting some aid. I am looking for a handful of somewhat dedicated collage artists that would be willing to contribute once a week. If I can find 4 people to help, that would mean each week there would be 5 different posts, with varying opinions and ideas. Of course, posting more often than once is great, but if there were a few of us posting once a week, it wouldn't be required to keep this resource alive. In addition, the added perspective of others here would probably add a different flavor to the blog. It wouldn't be all mine mine MINE! (cackles of laughter and hysteria fade in the distance)

Other suggestions that I received involved some improvements on the content. I will need to address this next. My flittering about from topic to topic, my habit of posting a lot of personal artwork, these things I need to get a handle on. My hope is that I can get some helpful interested folks to volunteer first to help share the burden.
If YOU are interested in promoting collage an an art form, can pledge to post once a week, email me privately and lets DO this!!

rustik@mac.com

A personal message

I don't spend a lot of time posting about my personal life, I tried that on live journal for awhile and I ended up paranoid or watched. A little bit about the other me you don't know about... I work full time for a trade newspaper publisher as a graphic designer/webmaster. I also do systems admin work which involves training and installing of software and hardware for the company. It's a busy job, and it keeps me up to date with technology. It doesn't offer me oodles of spare time at home tho. I guard my private moments and try to use them for creativity, or times with the fam. I don't watch tv, don't do movies generally, and I try to be focused on my own causes. The blog really is a portion of my life that seems to not be pulling it's weight however. I feel sometimes the giving is so much greater than the receiving....I hate to put it that way, it seems so selfish. Is the blog for me? or for you? It should be for both.

I have spent more time than I care to add up working on various posts for this little blog. It's sometimes an added pressure in life to have to worry about the pieces of a one-way conversation. I like the blog format, the fact that you can post pictures and share info easily. But it feels so utterly lonely just posting away everyday into the aether. I try to put a variety of collage related things up here in an attempt to feed the hungry who may also be taking their time trolling the web looking for insight and ideas. But where's the conversation?

I have to admit that I am feeling a bit defeated at the whole blog game tho. I read several serious popular art blogs and end up for hours on the comments, it's the conversation that grabs me most. That's exactly the thing that feels missing on this here blog! I tend to be pretty isolationist about my habits anyhow, but I am trying to draw in some kind of feedback and it just isn't happening. My fault? I have no clue.

I see my little webstats show that over 100 people read this blog each day. I just don't feel it's making sense to continue to pour my time into something that people are not interested in. I receive emails from individuals telling me about themselves, wanting to be posted on the blog...and that's all cool. I have had a few private emails asking me to address a certain topic or issue, but other than that, there is little feedback here and it makes me wonder. This is an open post. I am looking for any commentary, or maybe just some kind of sign that really is worth my time! Like Pink Floyd has said... Hello? Is anybody out there?

The Passing of Robert Rauschenberg

Robert Rauschenberg Untitled (Man with White Shoes) ca. 1954

According to the NY Times, the gifted Robert Rauschenberg passed away last night at the age of 82. A sad day.

Satellite 1955 mixed mediums and taxidermy pheasant, ca. 79 x 43 x 6 in. Whitney Museum of American Art

IN 2005, I went to the MET in NYC and made the effort to see an exhibit of his combines. Such crazy work!!!!! It was a moving exhibit. The physical mass of his combines, the usage of various household objects, his whole idea inspired me and helped me see things differently.

Canyon 1959 mixed mediums with taxidermy bald eagle and pillow, ca. 87 x 70 x 24 in. Sonnabend Collection

A quote from a review on artnet by Jerry Saltz says "Nevertheless, Robert Rauschenberg may be the American Picasso. He is a Dionysian maverick of experimentation, openness, visual wit and roguish nerve; an artist who cannot be diminished by others but who can only diminish himself; someone whose envelope-pushing has been inspirational for generations. As Johns generously avowed, "Rauschenberg was the man who in this century invented the most since Picasso."
As a collage artist, I am forever grateful for the masters that have come before me and paved the way for my visual freedom of expression. I appreciate Mr. Rauschenberg's contribution to collage culture and silently I nod my head in respect.

Reply Comparisons - Our Govt. at Work, or Not

I had gone and signed the petition at the IPA site about the Orphan Works Bill. So did many other graphic artists! I was on my Assemblage list this morning on yahoo and a reader had posted an email response that she had received from Senator Obama regarding the Bill. It was such a contrast to the 2 emails that I received from my New York State Senators, Clinton and Schumer!
Clinton and Schumer sent me the usual generic reply email, with nothing specific that addressed the Orphan Works issue. Obama sent an email that discussed the bill and his position! I am posting all 3 email replies here, for anyone that may want to see what Obama says in his. The part that astounds me is that Clinton and Obama are both working senators at this point in time and also working hard in an election, and in this little test, Obama won. He and/or his staff are on the ball. That's what I like to see. I am not really certain of his own personal position regarding the bill, and he quotes info that is common knowledge in the email, so the content is not too striking... But the fact that the email actually was about the subject really hit me.

Clinton:
Thank you for your e-mail. It is very important to me to know the issues
that are of concern to you. A growing number of my constituents are now
choosing to communicate with me via e-mail. I hope you will understand
that, because of the volume and range of e-mails I receive, it can take
some time to send a response that specifically addresses the subject
raised in your message. I do, however, want to let you know immediately
that your message has been received. Hearing from you and others through
e-mail helps me to quickly learn the views and interests of New Yorkers
and others, which is very helpful to me in my work in the United States
Senate. I hope you will continue to monitor my work through my website
at http://clinton.senate.gov, and I welcome hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton

Schumer:
hank you for your e-mail. Each and every piece of correspondence I receive is important because it allows me to better understand the New Yorkers I serve in the United States Senate.
As you can imagine, my office receives a great number of messages every day regarding a variety of issues – this is particularly true of e-mails. It makes me proud to know that my constituents take an active role in our government by corresponding with me, and I look forward to responding to your concerns in greater detail. In the meantime, I just wanted to let you know that your e-mail has been received, and to ask for your patience until I send you a more detailed response.
Again, thank you for writing. Please feel free to visit my website http://schumer.senate.gov to follow my work in the Senate and to learn more about the services my office can provide to you.
Warmest regards
[schumer failed to sign the email]

Obama:
Thank you for contacting me with your concerns about the Orphan Works Act of 2008.
You raise some important concerns.

As you know, the term "orphan works" refers to copyrighted works whose owners are
difficult or impossible to find. The U.S. Copyright Office has expressed concerns about the
uncertainty surrounding the ownership of orphan works, and this view has been reiterated
by both copyright owners and users, including artists and libraries. I have heard from
many constituents who believe that this uncertainty discourages subsequent creators and
users from incorporating orphan works into new creative efforts, or from making these
works available to the public.

At the same time, you raise some important concerns regarding the potential implications
of orphan works legislation on the photography and visual image industries, including
many of my constituents who are photographers, illustrators, and graphic artists. It is
often exceedingly difficult to find the copyright owner of a visual image, generally because
the name of the image's creator is not on copies of the work distributed to the public.
Thus, there is a real danger that the works of some of these artists might be inaccurately
labeled orphan works.

As you know, this danger exists whether or not new legislation addressing orphan works
is passed. However, I do understand your concerns regarding the new compensation
mechanism proposed for orphan works use.

The Copyright Office has proposed that in most cases, including all commercial uses, the
user of an orphan work would be obligated to pay the copyright owner "reasonable
compensation" for the use prior to the time the owner resurfaces. Also, the user will
generally be unable to continue making use of the work after the owner asserts his
copyright. The problem is that litigation costs associated with asserting this right to
"reasonable compensation" may be prohibitively expensive for many copyright holders.
This critical point should be taken into account in ongoing discussions over orphan works
legislation.

S. 2913 was introduced on April 24, 2008 by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT). It was referred
to the Judiciary Committee for consideration. A companion measure in the House of
Representatives, H.R. 5889, was approved by voice vote on May 8, 2008, by the
Subcommittee on the Internet and Intellectual Property. While I do not serve on the panel
considering the Orphan Works Act, you can be sure I will remember your concerns should
this bill come before the Senate floor.

Again, thank you for contacting me regarding this important issue. Please stay in touch.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama
United States Senator

Nall -As Seen on Myartspace

I read this informative article about a southern artist from Troy, Alabama named Nall. He was noticed by the good people at myartspace, and they have an interview with him on their blog. This oh-so-lucky man was able to study with Dali and work in a studio that was owned by Jean Debuffet!!!


His work is a conglomerate of mosaic, with a dash of painting working up to glorious collage and I find myself once again wanting the ability to see his work up close, to feel the texture...Good strong deep stuff. He has started the N.A.L.L. art association (Nature Art & Life League) and there is so much more to be found here at the website. There's a lot to view. It's worth some time to read about this man that is working to bring something back to the art world that has been so gracious to him, and to the artists in Alabama, with whom he feels a kindred relationship.

I think I found the Alchemy gallery the most compelling, but with so much good work, making a choice for favorite wasn't easy.

Puzzling Collage / Love = Love

An interesting exhibit is showing at Jen Bekman, in NY. This is an exhibit of large-scale photographs of collage works done by Ken Rogowski using various puzzles that were cut from the same die, and then reassembled to form these new works. I like the self-imposed structure of these. By that, I mean I enjoy looking at the rules that artists force upon themselves as they struggle with creativity. I think this must be the very "restraint" that Matthew Barney is so fascinated with in his lifelong Drawing Restraint series. Do these personal rules help us rule out some of the variables that could exist within our own depictions? Interesting idea. I think it may. I know I am always coming up with restrictions that end up making art more of a game at times, and this thrills me for some reason that only the child in me understands. (for example, my own personal use of rather monotone-istic color palettes.)
But, something is puzzling me. (pun intended!) I do have a question regarding the use of the photograph of the collage as the show, instead of the collaged puzzles themselves. According to the press release on the Bekman site, "In photographing his completed objects, Rogowski transforms them yet again. Shifting the scale of the photographic image modulates the grid-like uniformity produced by the borders of the puzzle pieces, diminishing or increasing the order they exert over the chaos of the constructed image."
Of this exhibit Bekman says, "First and foremost, the layers of his process are a meditation on the photographic image as an object, rather than as a document."
Would the message that the viewer received from the art be the same, whether the artist exhibited the collages themselves at actual size or whether he exhibited large scale photos of the collages? Is the larger than life image somehow altering the message, the meaning? I just am curious, in view of the fact that these very large projects seem to be popular lately. i. e. Jeff Koons and his large sculptures in NYC.

Kent Rogowski at Jen Bekman
On view May 7 - June 14, 2008

BTW, Bekman is sponsoring a super cool looking photography contest...find out more here Hot Shot!

success

A recipe for Success:
Go to the end of your rope, then tie a knot and hang on!

Rodin quote

There is no receipt for improving nature; the only thing is to see. A mediocre man copying nature will never produce a work of art, because he really looks without seeing. On the contrary the artist sees, that is to say his eye, grafted on his heart, reads deeply into the bosom of nature. That is why the artist has only to trust his eyes.
—Rodin

Orphan Works, Sign Here

Following up my post about the Orphan Works bill, I have found the link to where you can participate/protest. At the very least, read up on this and make an informed opinion.

She Was a Part of the Architecture

She Was a Part of the Architecture
Originally uploaded by misphit

Continuing on in the series... This one is on paper. I am worried about the substrate holding up....poor choice! Where's all my cardboard???

The Horrific Rejuventation of the Orphan Works Bill

Just when things are getting quiet with me regarding the entire copyright issue, I read this horrifying report about The Rejuvenation of the hideously harmful Orphan Works Bill. Good grief!!! Artists of all kinds, it's time to do some reading, and some writing to members of Congress and Senate.
What on Earth is the Orphan Works Bill?
It's' a whole lot more than I feel capable of writing about, that's what!
This time you will need to go off and do some reading, but this is important stuff.

It's a bill that is destined to wreak havoc on any works of art that weren't formally registered with our copyright office. Please go to this link on the IPA (Illustrator's Partnership) site, and read the very informative ORPHAN WORKS RESOURCE PAGE FOR ARTISTS.
Mark Simon's article is here...and he also discusses the ins and outs of a bad deal about to go real bad.
There's also some information here on our very own us.gov site...they link you off to here, to the legal jargon!
Please do educate thine self. These are treacherous times.

05-0010-4-70045

05-0010-4-70045
Originally uploaded by infamecless

by InFameClass....insane type on this collage.

Dan Hillier's Cabinet of Digital Collage Curiosities

Dan Hillier did a little black and white art for the Strychnin invitation to their latest show, "In the Absence of Colour – a Black & White Group Show" which is opening this Friday in London. (details here) I did a google on Dan, intrigued as I was by his funny goat men on the invite.
His site is superb. The images are really interesting, but I do have a thing for things macabre.

Damien Hirst, Lay Down. Dan is the master of skull alterations, and I really enjoyed his skull plate series. Plate 4, Baby, reminds me so much of my deconstructed victorian epergne.
Do spend some time on the sketchbooks. It's crazy colorful stuff and contains collages beaucoup! (I think my fave was Australia)
A chance to see his stuff up close and personal can be had at the Strychnin show. Those lucky enough to be in London for this show, "I doff my hat to you!"

Forget me not

Forget me not
Originally uploaded by misphit

Started out okay with this one, but by the end I was not liking it as much.

Too blue, too clear. not enough goth! i feel smoke and i got clean air.

Altered Banana Republic Bag

Altered Banana Republic Bag
Originally uploaded by misphit

This is one side of an altered Banana Republic shopping bag. I liked the white bag, looked like a canvas to me. Reinforced the bottom with velvet so this is usable. Plan on doing the reverse side with artwork also.

Downsides? The owl bothers me. Also, will this bag live up to shoppers' abuse?

Not too psyched with any of these personal pieces lately. I know I am a bit overwhelmed by the shadow of death, and this is keeping me from totally enveloping me in this series. I need to remove the cloud surrounding this and somehow get to the real emotional root of it all. These pieces seem dead ( no pun intended). Contrived. The flow is missing. Back to the messy table.

Slob Studio Shots / A Reality Check

Today we wander into the pig-sty that is my studio. I thought it would be a learning experience to show you just how archaic things get for this wacked out collage artist.
My studio was particularly messy last week and when I took a break and came back to work, I had a good laugh. I wanted to share this with clearinghouse readers...Sometimes you see these really excellent photos of peoples' workspaces, and they are all organized and anal neat, and kinda pretty, with antique boxes, and vintage trunks and nice stacks of paper all arranged in neat bookshelves.
That's not the way it works for me. And I suspect others may fall into this category right along with me!



THE table where the magic happens.

I work primarily on this old oak desk. It has limited top space, but I insist upon piling strange objects in funny scenes on it ad infinitum. This ends up taking up about 1/3 of the possible room, but when I am daydreaming when working, it's fun to talk to the doll that is laying inside the cricket cage that is hanging inside the birdcage that has keys hanging on the outside.

One side of the desk. Strange styro head inside cage. That represents the other half of me, the half that is living in the world normally. She sits and watches while that second half of me gets crazy. Now and then we try a conversation. She doesn't say much.

On the other end of the desk is the group of mugs and tins filled with pens pencils and scissors. There's always bottles o' ink, Golden acrylics, and random glue sticks floating around underneath and on top of everything. Every now and then, when I start a new group of pieces, this mess gets cleaned up and everything is put into the drawers and wooden boxes they belong in, but they don't stay there long. Almost immediately upon cleaning off this surface, it gets trashed with the next wave of work. In fact, I think cleaning it encourages me to get messy> he he he.


The floor. It takes a serious beating. I didn't notice that my mouse was hanging off the edge of the other desk till I took the pictures!! Poor abused thing.

The most taken for granted place is the floor. I don't even attempt to try to be neat when I am at work, (can you tell?) The little kritzly pieces that I trim end up on the floor, along with good stuff too. When I clean up, I actually sit there on the floor and examine the waste paper before trashing it. Sometimes good little pieces that I cut get stuck on my shirt or whatever and end up on the floor. I hate to lose a good head by just scooping up the mess and tossing it!! I have boxes of pieces that were cut and ended up not being used. BOXES and boxes ....it's really crazy.


These white metal shelves hold some of the many boxes of stuff I daily use. I currently have 3 full boxes of food labels. There's at least 4 boxes of loose ephemera and random pages from magazines. Theres' 2 full boxes of large nice ephemera pieces, the nicer treasured stuff. There's envelopes full of sheet music, and other envelopes packed full of laser prints from my photos. The list goes on and on. It morphs and changes daily. If I find something I intend to use, I better grab it along the way, because things get buried for years in these boxes. I once created a small little mini book, scanned it and left it on the desk. I haven't seen it in 3 years.


The other side of the room, opposite the main desk. This is a drafting table...with the second bird cage. Usually it's so cluttered I can't work on it.

It's somehow comforting to be surrounded by all these things. I like to be able to see everything. I know, it would drive a clean freak crazy, but it's the way I do it. Thank God the studio is upstairs and no one sees it but me and now YOU!