Educated Eye Fine Arts

Rice Paper Collage

Leslie Morse | Sentinel | $150
Rice Paper Collage| 1973
4 " x 5 "

This series of miniature rice paper collages was created in the years 1972 - 1974. They are composed of layers of hand painted and torn rice paper on bases of wood and hardboard. The adhesive used was ordinary wheat (wallpaper) paste.

The beautifully painted papers I used for these collages were the leavings from the large collage paintings of my mother-in-law and mentor, Emily Hall Morse. These papers were hand painted using mixtures and sometimes layers of casein paint. Casien is a milk-based form of opaque paint similar to tempera; it mixes with water but is more fluid in its application and more permanent and flexible once dry. It has an unmistakable milky smell and chalky feel.

With Emily’s paper scraps, I had what amounted to a palette of elegant papers each of which had a unique color and texture. When torn, they became intriguing shapes which could be layered into serendipitous compositions. The making of an abstract collage like this is a totally unplanned and right-brained activity: time stops and breathing slows as I put together papers of possibly unrelated colors, shift them about until some compositional balance appeals, then freeze that moment by pasting the papers layer by layer. In a sense, these collage paintings paint themselves; I am just there as facilitator and observer.

When doing collage, I become “captured” by piece of art in the making. Very seldom is a piece done in a single sitting, no matter how small. Until it is finished, I have a compulsion to get back to the artwork and it will occupy my imagination and my dreams. I cannot walk by without sneaking a peek, playing with another patch of color, slightly changing a shape to alter the balance. I will dream of color combinations, shapes, lines, and spaces and wake up to go straight to my work. It is a seductive process.

Just when I least expect it, the collage (or painting, etc.) is finished. I am surprised that while I was busily working, somehow the composition resolved itself. Shapes and colors that I had been working into balance just fell into place and it was obviously time to stop and step back. If I am able to pass by it and feel satisfied for two or three days in a row, I can call it complete, ready to go off into the world. Occasionally I’ll see a brow-smacking omission and have to whip it back into shape, but usually I’m happy to say finis. Signing and naming usually doesn’t happen until the artwork is ready to be framed and displayed.

Some of the collages in this series were exhibited at the Seattle Art Museum Rentaloft in 1974, where they were subsequently sold. The artwork shown on this web page is available for purchase unless otherwise noted. Contact the artist at lesliemorse@comcast.net.