Collage Fest

I am altering a children's book; you might know it....The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales.  My book will be titled "Through My Eyes".  It will contain portraits of the people and pets in my life. 

Of course the first page is a self-portrait.  I layed down torn pieces from old magazine and book pages, attaching them with matte medium.  Once that was dry, I worked the self-portrait in oil pastels.  When the portrait was about finished, I glued in lips cut from a magazine.  For my glasses, I used the key fobs from a Tiffany's ad then attached eyes to the top of the fobs.  I then came back in with more oil pastel to integrate the images into the collage.  For my blouse, I tore pieces of colored papers that were glued in place, again with matte medium.  I rubbed a little oil pastel over the surface to create subtle shadows.  To finish up, I stitched embroidery thread around the shirt opening.

Page 2 is a portrait of Mike. His portrait was made in the same way, but the only part that is added in are the sunglasses.  I didn't quite capture the way he looks.....I think it is the mouth that is wrong.

Page 3 is a portrait of Dusty.  I struggled with the proportions of her face, but feel like I got pretty close.  Once her portrait was complete, I added in the grasses.