The Joys of Collage Art

There are many hobbies I’ve tried to take on over the years, from learning to play the ukulele (isn’t it supposed to be easy?) to learning how to knit, but most have not really stuck. Except for one, and that is collaging. Whenever I have some free time on my hands (and if I don’t – I make the time around the new moon, which is symbolically a fresh start and a good time to set intentions), I create at least one piece of collage art.

I find that the process of collaging gets me out of my head and puts me in an almost trance-like “in the zone” space; one between the conscious and unconscious mind, allowing for a non-verbal, symbolic expression of my inner world. Sometimes I am even surprised at what I create or how perfectly the images and words come together.

It is easy to do, and I would say one of the least expensive hobbies or forms of therapy (this is what I mean when I tell friends I have a therapist), requiring:

· A 9x12 inch sketch book

· Elmer’s stick glue

· Scissors

· A bunch of magazines for images and words*

*Over the years, I have collected words from various newspapers and organized them into different categories, so I have easy access when adding to images. (I like to use a variety of fonts, from The New York Times, to the New York Post, to those in magazines – the most important thing is that the word(s) chosen reflect the inner expression).

The categories are health and the Self; travel and home; work and money; spirituality; and general (a place for words like “the” and “a” and some phrases that don’t fit into one category or perhaps multiple categories). I use Avery Plastic Document Sleeves (72311) to keep everything organized, including full-length images from magazines.

Over the years, my collages have looked quite different. In the beginning, they were very text-heavy, probably an indication that I was still very much in my mind (which, no judgments here!) is fine. Today, it is quite fine for me to have a beautiful image with only 3-5 words that express what I’m feeling, and that is enough.

I sometimes spend more time looking through my images to see what I’m most drawn to than I do creating the entire collage. And sometimes I use an image I’ve stored in my document sleeve from years ago that finally feels right, or the perfect phrasing for it has been found. It’s quite magical, actually!

On the other side, I sign it, date it, and if it was done during a new moon, I will also indicate that (ie New Moon in Scorpio, 11/20/25). Then, I take a picture of it so I can view it anytime or share digitally with others.

Every person’s “style” will also be different. I like things minimal and clear-cut, and my art reflects that (an art teacher who I shared my work with actually described my collages as more like as “graphic design”). A friend of mine creates collages that have an ethereal, dream-like quality, the kind that most people associate with collages.

Why do collages? Other than being a great meditative/therapeutic exercise, it can also serve as a “message in a bottle” to the universe of what you’d like to manifest in your reality. There are, of course, more things that go into making a dream come true, but there is also something so quietly powerful about putting that in an image (and signing it with your name).

I look back at my collages and many of my intentions came true! They might not have been exactly how I had imagined, but we are on the right path always.

Here are some examples of collages I’ve created. Hope you enjoy your own journey of collaging! Most importantly, have fun!