ABSTRACT
Collage began life as a serious medium with artists such as Braque and Picasso in 1910. Newspaper shapes found their way into the Cubists’ paintings once work had begun to develop a fragmented jigsaw quality (Chapter 17). Braque had already begun to add sand and sawdust to paint, so it was a small step to add paper. The idea was not exactly new as it had been used to decorate screens for centuries. Today, the term is used for almost anything stuck to anything reasonably flat, including picture frames, decorated mirrors, gift wrap and packaging. Modern glues have allowed artists to combine items in sculptural ‘collage’ as well as being used for paper and card. Young children may begin by sticking down pieces of paper, but there are many more ambitious ways to create using collage. Enough layers of card stuck down, for example, create a small relief surface which can then be decorated.
