Hi Artuta friends! My name is Jessica. I’ve been editing and writing text for Artuta for a few months, I am also a collage and soft sculpture artist! Today, I’d like to share with you the Artuta Art Tip content that I created. I hope you will try it out!
This Winter, I hoped we could skip the cold and jump into Spring. So, I present to you a very Spring-like Artuta Art Tips on creating your own paper stencils and using the stencil to create a collage! This is a very simple and fast way to make multiples!
For this project you will need:
A couple sheets of different color paper. I like to use scrap paper too!
A pencil
Scissors
Glue Stick
Eraser (optional)
tape (optional/ washi tape, because it's easier to remove)
Next, I decided what I would like to make. If you don’t know it’s ok too, you can draw and decide later. You will be cutting out your drawing, so it doesn’t need to be perfect.
I decided that I wanted to make a Henri Matisse (do you know him?) inspired collage. I drew a flower and a plant, and then I cut them out with scissors. While cutting your drawing make sure you leave enough space around your cut out to create your stencil.
Now you have a stencil!!! You can use the stencil to trace your drawing over and over again. I like to put tape over the area where I cut into the paper because it is easier to trace around.
You can even use the cut out of your drawing as a stencil! Adding and modifying your drawing as you trace to create different variations. Here I extended my plant to be a bit longer than the original.
Then go to town with your stencil, creating as many shapes as you like and cut them out! Here are my flower and plant shapes.
It’s optional if you want to erase your pencil marks. If you do, be gentle so you don’t rip your paper cut out! For most of mine, I flipped the paper over since the color paper was double sided :)
I had a vague idea that I wanted to do a jungle overgrowing garden type scene, but I wasn’t very sure, so I decided to put all the cutouts on a piece of paper and play around with different arrangements until I found one I really liked. Here are some that I came up with!
I moved the shapes around a lot, there were many possibilities! You could always make multiple collages too! And you can also glue as you go and place things wherever you please.
Once I decided on a layout, I started taping the pieces together to hold them in place.
Next, I started gluing! After gluing the back and placing the cutouts onto the paper, I started to slowly remove the washi tape. It may pull off some of your paper, so be gentle.
Ta-da!!! The end product! I decided not to use the flowers, as I felt the shape of the plants were enough. Now I can save the flowers for another project, sometimes things don’t go as planned and it's ok! I liked the colors from the flowers, so I decided to add little spores to the plants and since I see it as a night time scene, the circle in the top left is the moon. What do you think? I hope you have fun creating your own version of this Artuta Art tip!
If you’re interested in Artuta classes, our Drawing Salon is a great place to begin. Every Sunday, an Artuta instructor will surprise students with a fun prompt. Come join us! To find out more visit here: Drawing Salon
Jessica Lee
Hello! My name is Jessica. I am a collage and soft sculpture artist based in New York City. I am originally from East Los Angeles, California. I love making things and believe that art is an extension of yourself. I am always excited to see what Artuta students create!