Only Collage Can Do That: A Craft Essay by Shane Allison

For as far back as the third grade, I have always been into art more than any other subject. Writing was a chore in the beginning, Science was fun, and Math…well, I sucked at Math in every way imaginable. Art was something I could get behind. It was mine. Back then, teachers understood the importance of not just reading, writing, and arithmetic but the need for a kid to have a creative outlet. I couldn’t draw, but I loved to paint and make things using my hands, such as clay and pottery. At one point, I wanted to be a pottery maker or some kind of sculptor. But I didn’t think I could make much of a living doing that, as with most art forms.

I believe the worst thing that could ever happen to a kid is growing up. In high school, I began dabbling in poetry. Writing a poem here, two there, hiding off in the school library with my notebook, writing love poems. Poetry was like a first kiss for me. I was a lonely, awkward kid, so when I found that I had a love for writing, I held on tight. I felt like it found me versus my finding it. By the time I made it to college, I felt like I was the next Langston Hughes or somebody. You couldn’t tell me anything. I published a few things between 19 and 25. Other poets who were seasoned would tell me to keep writing. I understand that now four collections in.   

College was when I started to get back into art. I started working with collage back before I knew what collage was. I would cut things from books and magazines and paste them together without any kind of real direction. You can see that in my earlier work. Many of my notebooks became art books, a kind of portfolio. I would glue and tape random things on the cover and inside the pages. I didn’t take it seriously until I was introduced to artists like Joe Brainard in graduate school. After him, it was like the floodgates opened.

I later moved into incorporating paint and found materials in my art. I’m all about texture and experimentation. I discover new ways of working and new ideas with every strip of tape, paper, or drop of glue. I really do wing it. Let’s see what happens if I do this, and if I do that kind of thing. I will have an idea in my head for a piece, and it always comes out exactly the way I picture it. Only with collage can I do that.

I see myself moving closer to new ways of working. Bigger collages, bigger paintings, and other works. I love abstract art. I can see myself painting more. I adore Willem DE Kooning’s work. Anything experimental and out of the ordinary really gets me going.