Strange (Geometric) Beasts

AVOCADO, Paper Collage © Chandra Orr/Junkmill

I have a strange fascination with squares and grids. Visually, they represent perfect order. In collage, though, they present the opportunity for perfect chaos. I see each square as a little window, a tiny vignette, a miniature blank space waiting to be filled with treasure, like the individual compartments in a curio shelf. I seem to work with the square motif most often when I've been away from my glues and inks for awhile. It's an easy portal back to the pages, a quick way to get my fingers used to the textures of the papers and the manipulating of tools and elements. It's a no-brainer. Perhaps that's why I'm always pleased with the results: Not much room for error.

GEOMETRIC, Paper collage © Chandra Orr/Junkmill

For Avocado and Geometric, I simply punched squares from decorative papers, old book pages and old magazines using a scrapbooker's handheld die-cutting punch. Avocado features 1-inch squares, while Geometric incorporates much smaller squares. I then assembled the squares in a nearly random fashion, just grab one, glue it down in the most reasonable location and move on. The key to the success of this quick exercise, I think, is not over thinking it.

WOVEN, Ink and paper © Chandra Orr/Junkmill

The paper weaving came of my desire to bend and morph squares in the fashion of an optical illusion. I used bingo dabbers to color both sides of each page (2 pages total), then cut wavy strips in opposite directions on each page and wove them together. I think I recall doing something similar in grade school art class. At any rate, I like the colors and way the text is slightly misaligned from square to square.

All three collages come from my Strange Beasts art journal.