CUSTOM SOOTHSAYER original paper collage


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Size & Details

Size & Details

Original paper collage commission for a Denver home. Features a mystical soothsayer in ornate garb, predicting the future. Tribal, skull, owl and fire details.

  • Medium: vintage papers on wood
  • Size: 60" H x 72" W (framed)
  • Frame: hand-built salvaged metal
  • Residential commission
Process

Process

A commission might be based on a narrative, true or otherwise! A storyteller at heart, Dolan is a master at bringing the plot points of one’s favorite tale to life in 2D or 3D visual form. Layered and subtly nuanced, the materials included in each piece add additional detail and depth to bring the story forward. In this large-scale paper collage, Dolan sought to bring a story relayed by the client – based on a vintage photograph – to life, creating a striking visual representation of the many layers in every person, and the mystical truths that may never quite come to the surface.

process

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.