Andre Breton, Three Collage Poems, (1920's) "When will the arbitrary be granted the place it deserves in the formation of works and ideas?" -Andre Breton, From For Dada

This is a one of a kind, handmade collage on a 5 in x 7 in canvas frame featuring my own poetry. Poem was handtyped using a Corona Deville XT. Collage is made from magazines, stickers, stationary paper, tissue paper, a small maple leaf, a small key, 2 small gears and a lot of love. It is coated with Mod Podge for a glossy finish. This piece would be perfect for a heartfelt gift or to add some art and inspiration to your own space.

WARNING: Collage poetry can be quite messy, and requires space. Collage poetry can also be addictive. Tools required: Paper/cardboard for background Double-sided tape/Glue Words – sourced from magazines, newspapers etc. There are a couple of different approaches to collage poetry and these can be swapped depending on your mood or aim in creating a collage poem. 1. FOUND POEM create a poem based on the words available to you scatter the words over the table, and allow the poem to emerge from the words. Consider the visual layout of the poem Collage poetry is not just about the text but about how the poem looks on the page. 1. THEMATIC Collect words along a similar theme and then use to create a poem. E.g ‘I said No’ – variations of the word ‘no’ were collected for weeks before the poem was created. Pregnant and paranoid just emerged when the word ‘pregnant’ kept showing up in my word collection. VISUAL PARAMETERS Construct your poem according to set visual parameters e.g The poem must be all black text. All red text. OTHER PARAMETERS Use text from only one source e.g one magazine, a pamphlet, a brochure. TECHNIQUE Have several poems on the go at the same time. If word doesn’t fit one poem, it may fit another. Play with the word order. Look for unusual word combinations Rearrange the layout a couple of times before you start committing the word to the background. Use good, strong, visual text Think about how it will reproduce if you photocopy it. Consider including images as part of your poem. MOST OF ALL, Have fun!

mixed media collage on canvas board with rumi quote. anca gray. 2012.

These are original poems, but I didn't write them. I just cut words out of magazines, newspapers, junk mail, and save them. Then I start arranging them on a page until I sumble upone something I like. Amazingly there are themes and threads that come from my subconsious mind while I'm cutting out words. I wish I had a better pair of scissors. http://chickollage.blogspot.com/2007/04/365-collage-poetry-challenge-day-6.html