I had the good fortune of stumbling upon an enchanting experience last week. While in Philadelphia, I visited the Collage Philly exhibition “Paper Trails” at the Aetheneum. I’ve never been to an exhibit that was purely collage, and though it only took up one room, it was truly powerful. To see so many incredible, varied collage pieces of different styles and mediums all in one place, framed and hanging was validating. It told me that my art is valuable, and worthy of this distinction.
When I’m hunched over my desk, accompanied only by piles of old magazines, tearing out pages and cutting out the things I like, it can feel very… juvenile? Primal? Like I’m a raccoon ripping through a trash bag, or a crow collecting shiny objects. Just not as sophisticated as “real art" - painting, drawing with pen + ink. I know the act of fussy cutting images with a sharp xacto knife takes skill, and the rearrangement imagination, but it’s been ingrained in my mind for a long time that collage is the crude, arts ‘n craftsy redneck cousin of fine art. So the few times I’ve seen it alongside Van Gogh or whathaveyou, I’ve felt completely enamored. It’s like, hey, that’s what I do. It’s laudable!
The piece I loved the most from Paper Trails was “The Birdwatcher” by Lancaster artist Dan Zdilla. I wrote my third installment of Why Birding about the portrait subject, Christian Cooper. I’d love to someday try making this type of collage, painting with paper. To try that scares me, and it’s been on my yearly to-do list for 2024. Needless to say, this collage style astounds my eyes.
You can grab my Christian Cooper themed bird zine here. A portion of the profits from the sale of this minizine will be donated to Amplify the Future, one of the few black-led and latinx-led orgs directly investing in the future of environmental leaders, and promoting the notion that birding is for everybody.
Something really fun that I made recently was a flexagon with a cento. I attended a Zine Lunch with Dare Williams about centos, cut-up poems sourced from the poems of a specific author. I printed out a few Mary Oliver poems and set to work trying to rearrange it all to make sense, but it just wasn’t happening. I came up with a few lines I did really like though, and decided to mount them on a flexagon that I collaged with animal/insect images. I love this praying mantis dude.
You only love what you pay attention to with gazing eyes /
the world offers herself /
to the one who has imagination /
I have made her endless.
I really dig it, and you can watch a video of the flexy unfolding on my Instagram (since I can’t figure out how to imbed it here). I later made a mini minizine using some more of the cut-up words and a bit of a magazine page I liked. Zines can be anything!
This is ending up to be a long newsletter. I appreciate my subscribers, so here’s a little thank you for being here! Through the end of the month:
Welp, as much as I love Autumn - the drop in humidity, saying byebye mosquitoes, hoodies and cozy soup aromatherapy - this particular change in seasons can cause some slightly disruptive waves in the equilibrium of my mental health. Fortunately, I know some hacks.
I can now recognize when the doomscrolling starts to steal my serenity, and I’m opting to delete IG more days than not. I’ve started using the SAD Lamp daily again, gotten religious about not missing my Vitamin D, and vowed to spend more time in the forest.
The summer heat really took a toll on my walking practice, so I’m trying to do a vigorous hike a few times a week. The state parks in PA can’t be matched, and I endeavor to find stillness in order to appreciate the changing colors before they’re gone. I’m thinking about who might show up in the next issue of Mushrooms I Have Known…
And this bird nerd is reveling in Fall Migration, too. :) I hope you’re taking care of yourself, reader.
In related news, I’m super excited to be leading a Zine Lunch workshop about self-care on November 1st! The one hour long event is held on Zoom, offered by Sarabande Books in KY, and free for all to attend. Whether you’re an experienced zinester, or total newbie just looking for some self-care and self-love tips, I hope to see you there! Register and read more here.
And lastly in artsnfartsnkris news, you can find me tabling my art at the upcoming HalloZine event, the grand opening of Pigeon Post in Scranton, for which I am sooo excited! A locally owned bookshop with a focus on nature and design? Sign me up! I cannot wait to shop there.
I’ll also have a table at Philly Zine Fest on November 9th! After visiting the Philly Comics Expo last weekend, I am more psyched than ever to finally check out this event. I hope to see you there!
That’s all, dear friend. Can you relate to my imposter syndrome with collage art? Have you been making centos all along and never knew what they were called? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
Love & Solidarity,
Kris
(they/she)