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WEEK 9: Personal Symbols (Collage Exploration)

What

Create a collage using magazines, newspapers, sheet music, book pages, or decorative papers. Choose one personal symbol — a shape, object, word, silhouette, or recurring form — and repeat it throughout the composition using cut or torn paper.

Why

Collage allows meaning to build through layering. By cutting, tearing, overlapping, and repeating your symbol, you give it weight and presence. The surrounding text, images, and textures may add unexpected context — or beautifully contradict it. Meaning doesn’t have to be literal; it emerges through repetition and placement.

How

1. Build the Ground
Start with a base layer using torn newspaper, sheet music, or neutral magazine pages. Let pieces overlap loosely. Don’t overthink placement — think texture first.

2. Choose Your Symbol
Select one simple form:

A circle, arch, window, ladder, bird, key, leaf, doorway
A repeated word or letter
A silhouette shape
A hand-cut abstract mark

Cut or tear it from different sources — bold type, photographs, muted pages, patterned paper.

3. Repeat with Variation
Introduce your symbol at least 3–7 times:

Change the size
Rotate it
Crop part of it
Layer some underneath and some on top
Let some be partially hidden

Avoid making them identical. Let each version respond to what’s around it.

4. Add Contrast or Quiet Space
Consider leaving one area of the page less busy. Repetition becomes stronger when there’s room to breathe.

5. Final Touches (Optional)
Add light line work, stitching, paint, or pencil marks to connect the symbols visually — but don’t overpower the paper textures.