In the Studio: Original Art | Megan Coyle: Artist & Illustrator

July 10, 2021September 12, 2024

Lizzo

I’ve taken a bit of a break from collage-making, but now I’m back at it. At the beginning of the year, I completed nearly twenty collages within a short period of time. I was live streaming my process almost every night, and I burned myself out a bit. After taking some time off to focus on my creative writing and other creative endeavors, I’ve been well-rested and ready to return to collage.

This is a portrait that I initially started at the beginning of the year, but finally tackled completing it just the other day. Portraiture is a tricky subject to work with. It’s often difficult to get the likeness down of the figure, especially if it’s a well-known or famous figure. I used to only enjoy making portraits, but years ago I made too many portraits within a short period of time, and since then, I’ve distanced myself from portraiture. Although lately, I’ve been itching to challenge myself again. So here’s yet another portrait that I was able to complete recently. I definitely feel rusty, but it felt good to stretch those artistic muscles that have been out of shape for a while.

March 28, 2021June 9, 2024

It’s in Your DNA

This was another challenging piece that’s part of my new anatomy series. Again, I’m not quite used to working on more abstract pieces. The challenge has made my process more interesting. I really enjoyed using more fragments of photographs for the background for this one. I also worked on adding touches of texture within the foreground.

I think I’m getting close to the end of this series for the meantime. I may tackle one more related collage, but otherwise, I think I’ll start working on portraits soon. Again, this was a piece where I live streamed my process. I’ve really enjoyed chatting with followers as I’ve worked on my artwork. Previously, making artwork was such a solitary process for me, and as someone who really enjoys the company of others, live streaming has made me more motivated to work on artwork since it no longer feels like something that’s solitary, but more of a group activity.

March 10, 2021June 9, 2024

It’s in Your Blood

This piece was a challenge since I’m not really used to working on abstract and geometric pieces. It’s interesting how abstract red blood cells look, and I initially tried to incorporate some texture but realized that it was taking away from what red blood cells are known for – having a smooth surface. This was another collage I worked on while live streaming my process, and I’ve really enjoyed the small community I’ve found on TikTok.

Overall, I really like how this new anatomy series has energized me. I’m getting more excited about my art and my process by working on these pieces. I think previously I wasn’t challenging myself enough or really focusing my craft on any one subject. I had a tendency of tackling a subject here and there. I think I need to work on more of these cohesive bodies of work in the future.

March 3, 2021June 9, 2024

I’ve Got Your Back

A couple of my followers on Instagram suggested that I make a spinal cord collage, so I decided to make a piece that focused on a section of the spine (since the entire cord would be a little too intricate for the size I was working in). This piece was challenging for a number of reasons – it was my first time working on this kind of subject matter, and the pieces I cut for it were extremely small. Even the outline of the spine consists of small strips of paper.

Overall, I really enjoyed the challenge of working on something new. I’m having so much fun this year working on art. And I’ve surprised myself with how much work I’ve been able to complete within a short period of time.

February 25, 2021June 9, 2024

You’re an Animal…Cell

One of the most challenging things about working on this piece was working with all the tiny pieces. Since this animal cell collage is in one of the smallest dimensions I work in, often enough the pieces I cut would stick to my hands when I tried to glue them to the surface. I could work with tweezers, although I think I prefer gluing pieces of paper directly with my hands. For whatever reason, it makes me feel closer to my work. And thus I’m fine with the challenges involved with the process.

Again, this is another collage in my anatomy series. It really has been a breath of fresh air working on something new. I’m looking forward to continuing to tackle this series.

February 23, 2021June 9, 2024

I Beleaf this is a Plant Cell

When I was a kid back in school, I was always drawn to art and being creative, but I was equally drawn to science. I was fascinated by how things work and all the cells that make up various organisms. This plant cell collage is another piece in my anatomy series, and I’ve really enjoyed tapping into that love of science that I had as a kid.

I am having so much fun exploring anatomy with art. And if anyone out there has any suggestions for what I should try to tackle next, let me know. I am always looking for new ways to push my creativity.

February 5, 2021June 9, 2024

You’re Getting on my Last Nerve

I’m really amusing myself with the titles I’m coming up with for my anatomy series. This piece was especially fun to work on. I like how cells look so abstract. This nerve cell was inspired by a recent injury I am recovering from. It made me think about how complex our nervous systems are, and how fascinating nerve cells look.

I think I’ll have to do some more cell collages. This has been a fun change of pace from the usual portraiture and animal pieces that I do.

February 1, 2021June 9, 2024

The Serious Flamingo

I decided to take a break from still life and anatomy pieces and worked on completing this flamingo piece the other night. This was another collage I worked on while live streaming my process. I’m having a lot of fun answering viewer questions while I work. I also previously made three other flamingo collages, and since all of them have sold, I figured I might as well tackle this subject once again.

I focused more on using solid colors for this one, while mixing in a few fragments of texture. Sometimes I feel a need to incorporate more patterns and textures into my pieces, but for this one, I was more interested in mixing solid colors of pink.

January 31, 2021June 9, 2024

Dolphin

This was another composition suggested by one of my followers during a live session on TikTok. I’ve never done a dolphin collage, so I enjoyed tackling this for the first time. I struggled with this one for a bit, and I don’t think I’m entirely convinced that this is finished, but for now it is. Sometimes you need to set your work aside and tell yourself it’s finished, so you don’t overwork it. We’ll see if I revisit this one again in the future…

January 28, 2021June 9, 2024

You’re a Breath of Fresh Air

This is part of my new anatomy series. Previously I made a heart and brain collage, and this was another fun challenge. I like how abstract and interesting different organs are, and I enjoyed figuring out the composition for this one. I also like coming up with interesting titles (like figures of speech and puns) that go along with these pieces, instead of titling them they are and leaving it at that.

Lately I’ve been feeling really inspired. It’s amazing how one month you can feel so uninspired and then the next you can’t seem to have enough time in the day to make all the things you want to make. Even though I have a really small following on TikTok, the community there has helped motivate me to constantly work on new projects every week. I’ve been enjoying going live and streaming my process as well.