CUSTOM CORAL REEF original paper collage


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Size & Details

Size & Details

Original paper collage for a Texas home featuring a vibrant coral reef ecosystem with colorful tropical fish and personalized touches for the client. This vertical mixed media art combines hand-cut paper collage with painting.

  • Medium: vintage papers on wood
  • Size: 60" H x 36" W (framed)
  • Frame: contemporary silver patina frame with Museum Plexi
  • Hardware: ready to hang with wire on back
Story

Story

Dolan’s intricate seascapes feature... a sense of flowing water...

Is there an ecosystem more colorful or more abundant with life than a coral reef? At the request of a repeat collector, and with much delight, Dolan created this custom-sized underwater scene for a Texas residence, designed to fit perfectly onto a hard-to-decorate narrow wall. As his technique for creating highly-detailed and lifelike reef collages has developed, Dolan’s intricate seascapes have come to feature more creatures – both fish and coral – all with a sense of flowing water to bring the scene to life. This commissioned version includes a custom collection of the client’s favorite fish, including a pair of curious seahorses. Look closely at the detailed papers to see how each tiny detail is crafted from individual pieces of paper; look even closer to see the tiny treasures and personal notions hidden throughout.

Process

Process

Each Dolan Geiman collage is crafted from hand-cut vintage papers sourced over decades of exploration and careful categorizing, held dearly until the perfect piece arrives to claim their colors and texture. Learn more about the making of paper collages here.

CUSTOM CORAL REEF original paper collage

Learn More

Dolan Geiman Paper Collages

Dolan's signature paper collage artwork celebrates America's West and Southwest. Color, composition, and detail come to life in hand-cut vintage materials, many salvaged in Dolan's cross-country travels.

Creating the original collage starts with a wood panel. Dolan pulls vintage sheet music from his vast collection and applies these to the wood, first with glue, then with a top layer of whitewash paint. In many prints, this background layer of sheet music peeks through.

Next, Dolan draws the outline for the original collage in graphite atop the sheet music.

Dolan returns to his extensive trove of collected papers – think magazines, antique textbooks, handwritten letters salvaged from abandoned farmsteads - and begins pulling the ideal colors for the piece. He cuts each piece of material by hand and carefully layers into the artwork. These collages are carefully crafted from thousands of small papers: no two are exactly alike.

Dolan's paper collages are finished in a handmade frame constructed from salvaged metal or a modern, minimal wood or metal frame.