th
20
century expressions II –
Collage
Georges Braque, (French,
1882-1963) Guitar, collage,
charcoal, pencil, gouache,
99 x 65cm, 1913.
Collage and papiers colle means ‘to glue things down’, and involves
gluing paper, textiles, wallpapers, bus tickets or even objects onto
the 2-D surface of an artwork. This is a normal and accepted part of
art practice these days. It started, though, in the first decade of the
century with the work of Georges Braque, Picasso and Juan Gris –
all of whom were exploring the
Cubist style at this time.
Juan Gris, Breakfast, collage, crayon and oil on canvas,
80 x 59cm, 1914
Cubism was a style developed mainly by Braque & Picasso at beginning
of the century. It involved creating an artwork showing different sides
of an object: multiple viewpoints at the one time. Cubism developed
over time. It was inspired, amongst other things, by Cezanne’s
fragmenting of an image into patches, which went towards destroying
the ‘window on the world’ illusion we’ve been used to….
Cubism AND collage both had the effect of flattening the depth of the
painting, so that the surface of the work becomes more apparent.
Cubism and collage worked in together.
Cezanne, Mt St Victoire, 57 x 97cm, oil on canvas, c.1902-5
>>
Jean Metzinger,
Table by a window,
81 x 65cm,
oil on canvas 1917
Typically, collage used mass-produced items from
everyday life. An interesting link then, with the
interest in every day life we saw with the
Impressionists (and contrasting with the Symbolists
or Art Nouveau, which followed the more interior
and imaginative route.) These objects had no value
and were disposable. The idea of disposability is
itself a Modern phenomenon.
Items used in collage and photomontage
(collages of photographic items) were
themselves copies of things.
Collage raised questions about reality;
illusions; originality; commercial
production; and the artist’s hand.
Collages also questioned the traditional
skills involved with artmaking; and of
creating and interpreting worlds. Things
that were collaged (and similarly, Cubist
works) didn’t necessarily ACTUALLY LOOK
LIKE the subject. They represented the
object in a more abstract sense ( just as
text represents a word.) This was
happening for the first time and was
shocking and confusing to many.
Picasso, Man with a hat and violin, 1912.
Brief clip from Philadelphia museum of art, talking about 2 collages, of Picasso and of Gris:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHmeRiR5s_U&feature=endscreen&NR=1
Picasso, Still life with chair caning, 1912.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=286FiUvOeFs&list=PL2D885F5ED630353D&index=9&feature=plpp_video
Resources
Some notes on Collage: MoMa:
http://www.moma.org/collection/theme.php?theme_id=10064
Marsh, Margaret, Watts, Michelle & Malyon, Craig, ART2: practice. South Melbourne:
Oxford University Press, 2005.
Blistene, Bernard, A history of 20th century art. Paris: Flammarion, 2001.
Examining the exam – HSC questions
Q: How does Lewis Hine’s photograph, Steamfitter, 1920
represent social attitudes to progress?
Plate 1: Lewis Hine, 1874 –1940, USA, Steamfitter, 1920. Gelatin silver
print, 24.2 cm ×17.8 cm.
Q: Shahzia Sikander was born in 1969 in Lahore, Pakistan. She has achieved
international recognition for her artistic practice. In 2007 her artwork
Transformation as Narrative was exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary
Art, Sydney.
Explain how Shahzia Sikander uses different procedures in the
production and exhibition of her artwork Transformation as Narrative.
“Sikander carries a camera with her
daily, documenting her observations
which are frequently incorporated into
her work in some shape or form…”
– Rachel Kent, Curator.
Plate 1: A selection of Sikander’s
Preliminary drawings; photographs
And reference materials.
Plate 2: Gallery technicians assisting with the
Preparation of Sikander’s artwork Transformation
Narrative 2007 at MCA Sydney
Plate 3: Shahzia Sikander working on
Transformation as Narrative, 2007 at MCA
Sydney. Acrylic on wall, wall dimensions
686 x 1164cm.