Sometimes I think owls just look like they don’t care – hence the name for this piece. Plus, I suppose the sound they make also influenced the title.
Trumpeting Elephant
I’m always interested in finding different animals to collage, or finding different ways to collage animals that have already appeared in my work before. This is the first time I did more of an action composition of an elephant. I like how the “Trumpeting Elephant” seems to almost be smiling.
The Dancing Frog
I decided to have a little more fun with these animal collages by making more of an action piece. I was trying to make a collage of a jumping frog, but realized he looked like he was dancing instead.
The Ewok Terrier
This collage was inspired by a few photos that I took while on a trip to NYC. Sometimes I like to snap pictures of dogs that are being walked in the area, and on this particular trip, some of those photos included pictures of a little terrier. Once I got to work on this piece, I realized that the coloring of the dog’s fur, as well as his face, reminded me an awful lot of an Ewok. Hence the title for this piece.
The Daydreaming Fish
I always feel like fish are lost in a daydream, just swimming or floating around in the water in a daze. I don’t blame them though, the underwater world looks so much like a dream, so unreal and an entirely different world.
Swordfish
I put together this collage yesterday when I decided to film another time-lapse video. This guy turned out to be more of a character sketch. The video also shows how sometimes these collages are a struggle. I’m not sure how I feel about this piece, however, sometimes you just have to put aside your paper and scissors and say enough is enough – “I’m done!” Who knows, he may have inspired me to make a few different critter pieces…
Alligator
Last night I completed my first collage in 2015. This piece was commissioned by a teacher from Washington state, who is having her students study my work in class. I think it’s absolutely wonderful that she reached out to me to have a work of art made that she can share with her students, so they can see one of my collages in person! I also had a lot of fun working on this piece – especially with the detailing for the gator’s scales.
And now I’m off frame and prep the collage for shipping…
Red Fox
A couple of weeks ago I completed this commissioned collage of a red fox. I definitely had a lot of fun working on this one. I enjoyed working with the color palette and finding bits and pieces of texture to add alongside solid pieces of color. Foxes are such beautiful and colorful creatures. No wonder I liked putting together this collage.
Blue Duck
This animal collage is inspired by one of my walks on the National Mall in D.C. Squirrels and ducks are definitely the most popular wildlife I find there – however, I always enjoy trying to find different ways of tackling a familiar subject. For this collage I decided to make the piece a little more abstract and focus more on highlights and shadows by using a monochromatic color scheme.
Inquisitive Birdy
After completing a few still life collages, I just had to change things up a bit and make another animal collage. This piece was inspired by one of my strolls in a park in Chicago. A bird flew over to where I was sitting and got pretty close to me. So I had to take out my camera and take a quick snapshot.
I had fun tackling this piece, and I think that I may return to making another animal series. It all really depends on what inspires me when I start sketching a few more possible pieces.