Focus on Text, Part I: Found Text

Collecting & Sorting: Intentional, Incidental, or Poetic?

Welcome to this series’ Collage Circle focus: TEXT

If you missed the video introduction to this topic, you can find the full video HERE.

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Found Text: Collecting and Sorting

To start preparing for adding text to my collages, I spent some time this week looking through the recycle bin, pulling out old papers and books from of my vintage collections, and thinking about the possibilities available with different phrases and words while organizing a small bin of individual letters (A-Z).

I also found this little cut-out from a vintage Connie Blair Mystery by Betsy Allen quite funny (above) - or maybe not so funny in today’s world of air travel?

By spending some time collecting a range of text before I sit down to collage, I can give myself more freedom to create spontaneously (without having to stop and figure out how to get the text I want.) For now, I focused on finding “Intentional Text” - that which I add to my collages purposely. I want this text to contain words, statements, phrases, or messages that are important to the collage itself. They are part of the intention of the piece - as with my little collages “a good time” and “I just decided”.

To begin (inspired by the recent “Frankenshirt” clothing design of my younger child who recently spent a day cutting up words from T-shirts and sorting the letters into piles to be reconstructed into new words) I started the week collecting individual letters (adding conjunctions, words, and phrases to the pile as I came across anything useful or interesting). I then sorted and organized all the text for easy access, with individual letters secured separately using bags, tins, and boxes I hand on hand.

The Art of TEXT: Intentional, Incidental, and Poetic

When I think about adding text to my collages, I categorize my process into three areas.

(1) Intentional (and/or Narrative): Text with a purpose - to add a meaning or story to the piece (as with the two samples above).

(2) Incidental: Text that I think could add an interesting design element, pattern, or texture to a piece.

(3) Poetic: Text organized to be read as a poem.

This week, I mostly focused on collecting Intentional Text. However, I have a large assortment of vintage postcards that I’m excited to look at next - both for the graphic designs with text on the image side to use intentionally…

… as well as the handwritten text on the back that has the potential to be used in any text form.

I will also note, that while I prefer to collect intentional text with scissors, torn edges are especially great for incidental and poetic uses. Remember to consider not only WHAT text you are collecting (words and phrases that might be interesting or important to you), HOW you are collecting it (cutting or tearing), but also WHY you are collecting it (to use Intentionally, Incidentally, or Poetically?)

Then - look for some helpful ways to sort and store it to be ready to go on collage day!

Thanks for being here and happy collaging,

~ Jennifer

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