Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Bicycles and Peace, the Collage

Bicycles and Peace, No. 9

This is the collage I made this weekend. It is not the ninth in a series, that's just part of its name.

Today I am going to do something I never do: explain the artwork, or at least tell about my idea and some of the elements in the collage. Edward and Damon tease me at art shows when people ask me what was my inspiration for or the meaning of a piece. (And I wince.) Edward's advice and our running joke is, no matter which painting or collage, I should reply that it is about man's inhumanity to man.

My thoughts about this collage started when I found the bit of hand written manuscript of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace, his ninth revision. That is one of the two No. 9 references. My second inspiration came from recalling the story that Tolstoy learned to ride a bike at age 67, which frankly doesn't seem all that old anymore, and thoughts about how that anecdote is used for encouragement etc.

You can see the print of the manuscript as the background of the vintage bicycles image. Other elements include the peace symbols, the dove and the olive branch, and an image of a certain musician who is often associated with peace. Plus something about riding a bicycle seems peaceful to me, as well as earth friendly and all that. On the dark blue paper in the top left is a ghost image of Leo.

The collage on the screen appears just a tad lighter or less saturated than in real life.

Vintage bicycle images are from The Graphics Fairy blog

This piece is now available in my etsy shop, plus I have had a couple of prints done...just ask.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Stunning piece of work. Beautiful colours - right up my street! (via Graphics Fairy)

Anonymous said...

Forgot to say I put it on my facebook page and tweeted it.