Originals

BIRDS OF AFRICA original paper collage


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Size & Details

Size & Details

"Inspired by the more surreal landscape of the African desert and bush, I created an abstracted tree form to house some of my favorite African birds."

  • Medium: vintage papers on wood
  • Size: 66.75" H x 54.75" W (framed)
  • Frame: hand-built salvaged metal with abstract floral accents
Process

Process

No hole punch was used in the making of this work; each and every circle in tree's bark was hand-cut with scissors. Learn more about the collage process.

process

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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.