P.S. I’d be curious Duane to hear about “narrative” in your work. As you seem like you are creating/generating more of your own source materials, do you have a story or a world that your collages work within? I’m curious especially about things like Midjourney and what sort of prompts you use — like I see a number of robot/doll like figures coming into play and I wonder if they are characters to you?
This is an absolutely wonderful question!! Thank you so much for that! I think narrative does play a role in my work. But rather than one narrative, I think it’s a series of narrative fragments. The remnants of narratives. I tend think of my work as something almost geological. A process of examining and piecing together layers of narrative sediment that have been compressed together through the erosion of time and pressure.
I think this approach also connects to my Midjourney experiments. Part of what I do there is about randomness and discovery so I tend to keep my prompts very loose and vague. It’s a kind of iterative ideation. I tend to focus more on using image prompts, usually my own completed collages, or collage sketches, often coupled with public domain art works to use as stylistic references as well. Many times, as you’ve noticed, via prompting I’ll try to steer things that have a kind of technological influence. I think I’m trying to explore themes surrounding our relationship to technology, our relationship to the world, our ideas of alienation and connection, and where it all might lead, but also trying to do it from a kind of objective distance. I like to think of it as an archaeology of the future. Looking at the ‘future’ as a kind of looking back, a future that has already passed. A future that has become the past. In that regard, the characters are real and rich but are also mysterious and unknown, because while they project a contextual specificity, it is a context we don’t fully know, one that we don’t have complete access to and so we are left to speculate and investigate and wonder. I hope that makes sense and I hope that doesn’t sound too ridiculous.
My pleasure! Thank you! My process is always iterating and changing. It's where I have the most fun. It's the part I find most interesting, so I'm always experimenting and tweaking things. And, it's definitely the thing I love talking about the most,. Feel free to ask anything!
“Fussy cutting” is a big part of my process, but I have to have good lighting. I use a blade only when absolutely necessary. Focusing on putting scissors to paper is meditative and relaxing for me.
Thanks Jen! Love it! I admire that so much! Kirk Read recommended a documentary to me about a collage artist named Lance Letscher. It’s so good! He’s a blade guy, but he is a fussy cutter par excellence, and he talks about the contemplative qualities that come with that kind of approach. There’s definitely a meditative component to my process…but not in the cutting, haha.
Thanks LeAnn! Yes, I definitely think there’s something poetic about the process. A jumble of images and abstractions somehow get put together meticulously, and iteratively, until it becomes something unexpected, something than says more than you can express any other way.
I’m on team “no fussy cuts”. No fussy anything really. Like you, I sometimes think of this as laziness or impatience on my part but it’s really an intention. I want the flow and immediacy that comes from limiting fussy or overly technical steps while I’m making things.
Thanks Davin! I’m there with you for sure, but i really do appreciate that level of consuming care and attention that goes into the most ‘fussy’ approach. i watched a fantastic documentary about a collage artist named Lance Letscher. Its so good. He takes ‘fussy-cutting’ to a whole other level, and I can see how meditative and contemplative it is for him. I almost wish I could be like that too…almost, lol.
Duane, again you open the door to deeper questions strength and weakness...layers of process...knowing how, when and where to cut... Every day in my profession, I observe modern surgical techniques--with the use of digital technology and dynamic robotics--and there is a great deal of planning that happens before the first incision is ever made. I see this in your work as well! I notice the way you iterate, add, subtract, and alter the scale. You zoom-in to an almost microscopic degree that examines each drop of ink in a dot-matrix. And if you think about it, when zooming in to this degree, all cuts are straight lines--a magnified circle is really a series of tiny straight segments. I think your early stages are key--freeing you to make "unfussy" cuts when the time comes.
The idea of a "weakness" being a secret strength is so full of potential/creative energy. Thank you for this thought-seed.
Wow! This is such a fantastic analogy! There’s a lot here I hadn’t really considered. I have to thank you for those though-seeds as well. The pre-operating preparation is such a great way to visualize this. I definitely want to think on that idea more. Excellent observation regarding scale! Scale I think is one of the most fascinating things. How meaning and aesthetics shift dramatically and become entirely different experiences depending on how close you look or how far away you gaze. Thanks again!
Fussy cutting. I like it. I do it too. I have a tendency to sit, glued to one spot for hours, following one outline after another with a pair of scissors. It took me years until a blade felt natural in my hand. Still feels weird sometimes...
I envy you Joel! I can be very meticulous about other things and other parts of the process, but not cutting for some reason. It’s a kill I just haven’t acquired, but the fact that I lack has made me push my work in other interesting way. Sometimes your crutch is your strength. Thanks again!
Please don't be envious! Fussy cutting is as much of a curse as it is a blessing :D
At the end of the day, all art is just problem solving. Sometimes we show our working out and some times we don't. The important thing is that the problem gets solved, not how we solved it.
Interesting to learn about your collage creation process Duane. That's such a great point you make about playing to your weakness as a secret weapon. I think strengths/weaknesses are all about perception.
Thanks Neil! I totally agree! The lines between weakness and strength are porous. I think one easily rises and receded into and out of the other. It’s such an interesting co-mingling.
P.S. I’d be curious Duane to hear about “narrative” in your work. As you seem like you are creating/generating more of your own source materials, do you have a story or a world that your collages work within? I’m curious especially about things like Midjourney and what sort of prompts you use — like I see a number of robot/doll like figures coming into play and I wonder if they are characters to you?
This is an absolutely wonderful question!! Thank you so much for that! I think narrative does play a role in my work. But rather than one narrative, I think it’s a series of narrative fragments. The remnants of narratives. I tend think of my work as something almost geological. A process of examining and piecing together layers of narrative sediment that have been compressed together through the erosion of time and pressure.
I think this approach also connects to my Midjourney experiments. Part of what I do there is about randomness and discovery so I tend to keep my prompts very loose and vague. It’s a kind of iterative ideation. I tend to focus more on using image prompts, usually my own completed collages, or collage sketches, often coupled with public domain art works to use as stylistic references as well. Many times, as you’ve noticed, via prompting I’ll try to steer things that have a kind of technological influence. I think I’m trying to explore themes surrounding our relationship to technology, our relationship to the world, our ideas of alienation and connection, and where it all might lead, but also trying to do it from a kind of objective distance. I like to think of it as an archaeology of the future. Looking at the ‘future’ as a kind of looking back, a future that has already passed. A future that has become the past. In that regard, the characters are real and rich but are also mysterious and unknown, because while they project a contextual specificity, it is a context we don’t fully know, one that we don’t have complete access to and so we are left to speculate and investigate and wonder. I hope that makes sense and I hope that doesn’t sound too ridiculous.
Wow thank you! I was thinking, "How does he do it??" Somehow, this explains how you do it but I am still left astounded.
My pleasure! Thank you! My process is always iterating and changing. It's where I have the most fun. It's the part I find most interesting, so I'm always experimenting and tweaking things. And, it's definitely the thing I love talking about the most,. Feel free to ask anything!
This is a fantastic answer, thanks so much!
Thanks bearing with it! I didn’t mean for it to turn into a manifesto, haha!
No it was great. You could work that up into a post.
“Fussy cutting” is a big part of my process, but I have to have good lighting. I use a blade only when absolutely necessary. Focusing on putting scissors to paper is meditative and relaxing for me.
Thanks Jen! Love it! I admire that so much! Kirk Read recommended a documentary to me about a collage artist named Lance Letscher. It’s so good! He’s a blade guy, but he is a fussy cutter par excellence, and he talks about the contemplative qualities that come with that kind of approach. There’s definitely a meditative component to my process…but not in the cutting, haha.
Your collages are stunning! 🤩
Love these collages!
I really enjoyed reading about your creative process.
So glad to hear it! Thank you so much!
I love your collages and hearing about how you put them together. I find it amazing. It's so like poetry.
Thanks LeAnn! Yes, I definitely think there’s something poetic about the process. A jumble of images and abstractions somehow get put together meticulously, and iteratively, until it becomes something unexpected, something than says more than you can express any other way.
I’m on team “no fussy cuts”. No fussy anything really. Like you, I sometimes think of this as laziness or impatience on my part but it’s really an intention. I want the flow and immediacy that comes from limiting fussy or overly technical steps while I’m making things.
Thanks Davin! I’m there with you for sure, but i really do appreciate that level of consuming care and attention that goes into the most ‘fussy’ approach. i watched a fantastic documentary about a collage artist named Lance Letscher. Its so good. He takes ‘fussy-cutting’ to a whole other level, and I can see how meditative and contemplative it is for him. I almost wish I could be like that too…almost, lol.
Duane, again you open the door to deeper questions strength and weakness...layers of process...knowing how, when and where to cut... Every day in my profession, I observe modern surgical techniques--with the use of digital technology and dynamic robotics--and there is a great deal of planning that happens before the first incision is ever made. I see this in your work as well! I notice the way you iterate, add, subtract, and alter the scale. You zoom-in to an almost microscopic degree that examines each drop of ink in a dot-matrix. And if you think about it, when zooming in to this degree, all cuts are straight lines--a magnified circle is really a series of tiny straight segments. I think your early stages are key--freeing you to make "unfussy" cuts when the time comes.
The idea of a "weakness" being a secret strength is so full of potential/creative energy. Thank you for this thought-seed.
Wow! This is such a fantastic analogy! There’s a lot here I hadn’t really considered. I have to thank you for those though-seeds as well. The pre-operating preparation is such a great way to visualize this. I definitely want to think on that idea more. Excellent observation regarding scale! Scale I think is one of the most fascinating things. How meaning and aesthetics shift dramatically and become entirely different experiences depending on how close you look or how far away you gaze. Thanks again!
Fussy cutting. I like it. I do it too. I have a tendency to sit, glued to one spot for hours, following one outline after another with a pair of scissors. It took me years until a blade felt natural in my hand. Still feels weird sometimes...
I envy you Joel! I can be very meticulous about other things and other parts of the process, but not cutting for some reason. It’s a kill I just haven’t acquired, but the fact that I lack has made me push my work in other interesting way. Sometimes your crutch is your strength. Thanks again!
Please don't be envious! Fussy cutting is as much of a curse as it is a blessing :D
At the end of the day, all art is just problem solving. Sometimes we show our working out and some times we don't. The important thing is that the problem gets solved, not how we solved it.
Totally agree Joel! Somedays I think my art is the process of creating problems to solve, lol.
Interesting to learn about your collage creation process Duane. That's such a great point you make about playing to your weakness as a secret weapon. I think strengths/weaknesses are all about perception.
Thanks Neil! I totally agree! The lines between weakness and strength are porous. I think one easily rises and receded into and out of the other. It’s such an interesting co-mingling.
Sorry I made a typo on your name, corrected. lol.