Stories,+Dreams,+Goals

I worked with second graders while creating this approach to photo mantage as a way to illustrate stories. My work is based on instruction by Julie Brook Alexander.We traveled to the Rhodes School together and she helped to bring a LTP project to fruition! Thank goodness! I learned so much from the time spent with her in the classroom. She introduced the children (AND ME) to Joseph Cornell, Robert Rauschenberg, and William Wigman. Just to clarify, Wigman is famous for his photos of dogs but this supports his love of creating collages using postcards. Julie's own work will be shown atHooks-Epstein Galleries, Inc at 2631 Colquitt from February 20 - March 20, 2010. It is titled "reading between the lines." All lower case letters were used, this is not a typo. Her website is [|Julie's website]. (OMG! I added a link!! Yeah!) She says "I photograph lanscapes the way that quilters collect fabrics." Other artists that solidy my thinking are [|Maggie Taylor] and [|Martha Beck - Vision Boarding]

I am totally enthralled by the process that I have used and it is based on the strategies that I learned from Julie. I have taken this all a bit further and use the photographs in a completely way.

First - You have to create a story, poem, dream, goal...This can be in many different forms. (The pictures that you will see are all stories that groups of children created.) Second - You have to consider the essential parts, characters, action that you would want to put in an illustration. Third - Sketch a rough drawing of your thoughts. I used a half of a poster. This worked nicely but it was too expensive to scan so I ended up taking photos of the illustrations. Susan has said that 11x14 works well and keeps the cost of scanning at a minimum. Fourth - You create a background with watercolors. You take a paper towel and dip it first in water and then in the color that you want to use. Then you take the paper towel and paint your background. Of course you will use different colors for the different large spaces that will become your background. This provides a dramatic effect that is unbelievable. Be careful not to rub too hard or your paper will ball up. You can determine the intensity of the color by how much water you use. This is a very forgiving process. You can add detail with markers, colored pencils, crayons...ect. I recommend that you do this later. Fifth - You add your characters. This will be where your photos and free downloads come in handy. You can also use magazines and other pictures as you deem appropriate. The imaginative play begins when you begin to consider how you want ot pose so that you can incorporate yourself or others into the illustration. An example would be of a person riding a horse. The horse could be something that you downloaded off of the internet and you put yourself on top riding. How would you pose for a photgraph so that you would apprear to be riding a horse? FUN! This takes practice but in the digital age we have such a luxury! Sixth - After you have gathered all of your "glue on" photographs and pictures, you cut them out and arrange them onto your background. Once you are satisfied, you will attach everything. Last - Add your details. This is where I use caution because you don't want to overdo anything. Start. Take a break of an hour or so...even a day. Then return to your work and judge what else needs to be done. voila! You have a beautiful work of art that expresses what you have written.