Collage
The assembled image
Image · LEARN
Collage builds new meaning from existing material — cut paper, found photographs, scanned textures, type fragments. The friction between the parts is the point: collage lets you combine things that could never share a photograph.
It is one of the oldest radical tools in design, from Dada photomontage to punk flyers to contemporary digital compositing. It is also one of the most forgiving ways to experiment, because nothing is precious and everything can be moved.
Watch your sources: found material carries copyright and cultural baggage. Know what you are using and why you are allowed to use it.
Working with found material
- Sourcing and organizing found material
- Cutting, layering, and compositing
- Balancing contrast of scale, texture, and color
- Digital compositing and masking
- Understanding copyright and fair use of found images
- Using accident and chance as a method