Last week I got a last-minute shot at being in a class taught by Lynne Perrella at The Artist’s Nook and I took it. I attended the Sunday session of “Voluptuous Discards” and had a wonderful time. I love Lynne’s books on art journals, Artist Journals & Sketchbooks and Alphabetica. She is an enthusiastic and nurturing teacher. I would encourage anyone interested in her approach to collage to try one of her classes. She really puts the emphasis on generating work that is uniquely yours.

The class was mainly a process class in which each of us generated one large collage using many techniques. I started with a intentionally textured gesso layer, then added paint in successive layers using various techniques. I included some images of towers – multiple copies of one that I drew myself and one that I got from a book of medieval illustrations. I have done some sanding to enhance the texture, but I still have more work I want to do.

The folds in the piece are there because I choose to turn my collage into a book. Folding the sheet into pages that weren’t planned in advance led to some exciting and unexpected layouts. My work seems entirely different now that it is in the shape of a book. I want to spend more time on each spread, starting with water-soluble oil pastels for detail. I also hope to tone down the silver paint – I think it’s currently a little too strong for the piece.