Pushing Past Discomfort
A Journey Back to Abstract Collaging
This week, I revisited abstract collaging, an often difficult and uncomfortable process that I instinctively resist and push aside. I’ve done some experiments in the past but they resulted in haphazard or cluttered pieces. It doesn’t come as easy as starting with a photographic image as a focal point. I tried to shake the feeling off, but it kept gnawing at me for some reason. Then, that inner dialogue ensued:
“Why even bother? It's just going to fail.”
“So what if it fails? Just give it another shot.”
“It’s uncomfortable.”
"Stay open, will you?"
Back and forth, and so on.
Finally, I relented.
I bought an inexpensive notebook when Korean-owned Daiso opened a retail outlet at a nearby shopping center several years ago. Back then, I was working at a luxury hotel and the stress of that job was eating at me. I wanted to do something other than surfing the web on the weekends. My original intent for the notebook was to explore Zentangle, a method of creating repeated intricate and structured patterns within a defined space. It is a form of artistic expression that combines meditation with drawing. I made a handful of attempts between 2016 and 2017 then picked it up again in 2019. Unfortunately, the habit didn’t stick.
In between drawings, I jotted down my thoughts on photographic projects, such as the one where I was developing a cohesive theme for my street photography project titled "The Pensiveness of Strangers." (Currently on the back burner deemed not a strong body of work but that could change— we’ll see).
The last entries were in 2019. I had neglected the notebook until last week. I thought of resurrecting it as a repository for my abstract collage experimentations.
Two issues of Paris Vous Aime magazine that I picked up at Charles de Gaulle airport over the last two years have been sitting at my bedside. I've decided to start with these, as I've always intended to incorporate them into future collaging projects.
I took a deep breath, gathered a pair of scissors, and a glue stick, and started to peruse the pages. I cut up a bunch of typography and laid it on the floor. Maybe I could begin with strong graphic shapes as a focal point and build from there. I repeatedly flipped over the magazines trying to figure out what kind of background to use and nothing seemed to catch my eye. I took a break and decided to go downstairs for merienda (a light meal or a snack). I air-popped some yellow corn kernels on the microwave and shared it with Tina.
Afterward, I went back upstairs determined to finish at least one by the end of the afternoon. I settled on an obscure portion of an interior image shot. I spent a considerable amount of time arranging the typography cut-outs. It felt like I was losing a game of chess at each turn. As dusk approached, I realized I still had to put in my 45-minute workout on the rowing machine. Eventually, I settled on these two versions. Ordinarily, I refrain from gluing down my collages, but I made an exception this time, considering the painstaking effort I had put into them.
On the fly, I added a third one on the left below which ended up being my favorite from this session— simpler and stronger compared to the previous ones. Maybe I was overthinking them.
Satisfied where I left off, I made another attempt the following day. This time, I chose a design magazine that contained bolder typefaces. The one on the right was my first try.
Studying yesterday’s efforts, I realized both assemblages were too busy and lacked a central focus. What if I made them even more sparse and go with a minimal look? This time, I chose a plain background allowing the color and the typography as the main focus, and incorporated the cut-up paragraph to add depth to the composition.
Wow! The last three made me dance. I considered these a breakthrough in my book. Despite some issues with glue residue and with edges not quite lining up, they’re not too shabby. Sometimes, that’s enough to keep going. I don’t know what happens next but I know for sure I’m motivated to discover where this direction will lead me.
Thanks for joining me on this week's creative exploration! I hope today’s post encourages you to persevere with something that may have been holding you back and to consider giving it another chance. Who knows, there might be a breakthrough waiting for you in the future. We don’t always know until we try.
Sharing my notebook was inspired by Noted, a newsletter by
I’ve been following her for some time and have enjoyed the notebooks/journals she examines in depth by Martin Luther King, Eminem, and Leonard Bernstein to name a few. Do check out her newsletter when you have a moment:
As always, let’s meet each other in the comments section below. Let me know your thoughts if anything I shared with you today resonated with you.
See you all next Sunday!
Stella! These notebooks are so beautiful! I'm bookmarking this for future editions of my favorite notebooks on Substack!
Fascinating to follow your thoughts and your process here, Stella! I loved this journey of yours back into abstract collaging. You're an inspiration!
I loved all the art you've shown us here, but the last piece is my favourite. What I like about it in particular is the 'breaking through' of the section with the lettering on. Awesome.