Collage Terms and Techniques by Denise Enseln

Collage is a twentieth century form of art. From the French term for ‘to glue’, it is art created from a variety of more or less flat materials and objects pasted over a surface. Often the objects are painted or drawing upon to bring the work together in a unified design.

In the nineteenth century children and other hobbiests cut out and glued cards, papers and other things to boards in the manner of a scrapbook. Since there were a lot of advertising, greeting cards, magazines and other materials available to collect, it was a popular pastime in Europe and America.

In the twentieth century Cubists Picasso and Braque first glued newspapers and other papers to paintings and collage became an art form. Braque used a woodgrain patterned wallpaper piece in a still life and that method, known as papier colle, was also used by Picasso and Matisse.

All forms of art involve making creative decisions. The art of collage involves the usual decisions of line and color, paint and technique, but it is essentially based on decisions of selection of material, choosing how to tear, cut or otherwise shape it, and where and how to apply it to the evolving design. Sometime particular text or images are used for their content and sometimes the materials are chosen for the color or other factors.

Collage is not necessarily abstract or even recognized as collage at first view. Some artists build a collage of papers and other materials as the surface for a more traditional painting, or cut or shape materials in the manner of a mosaic so that the picture is dominant.

Working with found papers and other materials forces the artist to concentrate on shape, line, texture, color and other design elements. Collage can be part of a strongly themed work of art with social messages, or an elegant textural design piece. Sculptures of found impliments and arrangements of natural materials also have their roots in the tradition of collage. In all aspects of the collage form, the artist is the decision maker and his choices lead to a unique creation.

Most collage terms are French.

COLLAGE TERMS by Denise Enslen

Papiers collés Pasted papers (term used by Picasso, Braque and Gris)
Collage Action of gluing paper or other flat material to a flat surface
Décollage Removing glued paper
Encollage Encasing pieces of paper or material with a glue substance
Précollage Getting design on the surface ready to be glued on
Colleur An artist who works with collage (term collagiste is often used in the States but not in the French dictionaries)
Watermedia collage Collage using water base paints along with glued material
Mixed media collage any media with collage
Assemblage The process of gluing 3D objects on a surface
Montage About the same as assemblage
Photomontage Gluing photos or pieces of photos on a flat surface
Découpage The process of cutting paper or other material
Brûlage Burning some part of the paper to use in collage
Fumage Exposing paper or other material to smoke
Bricolage Assembling odds and ends for a collage
Frottage Action of rubbing on collage for texture
Froissage Crumbling paper
Déchirage Tearing paper
Nettoyage Cleaning up all material
Vernissage Applying or spraying a varnish on the finished collage (Meaning also the first day of an artist exhibit, originally in 1886 when the artist was allowed to finish applying varnish on their completed work)

Visit Watermedia Collage by Denise Enslen for further information on collage.

Denise has been painting since she retired from teaching. She has received many ribbons and awards. Recently she had decided to add another dimension to her watercolor painting by using different material such as pen and ink, gouache and “papier collé” (glued paper). She is an active participant and supporter of the The Baker’s Dozen Show/Exchange.