Andy Warhol (1975): Mick Jagger
The first thing that came to mind was an image I had seen recently when I did some research on Andy Warhol’s celebrity portraits. Warhol had made a series of prints of Mick Jagger. I looked them up and found out they’re screenprints. But I think the way Warhol treated the subject would work as an approach to chine collé as well. Warhol combined linear elements with shapes in different colours. I find this series really exciting and it brings across Jagger’s (projected?) personality extremely well.
Multiple versions seem to exist. I like the photo where original polaroids were placed next to the prints that were developed from these. Particularly important for me is how Warhol used photographs as sources for his prints. I’m alway having legitimacy issues when using photos, as if they’d be an “inferior” source to work from, compared with drawings. So it’s good to see an artist using photos well, as it means “it’s allowed”.
Naila Smith: Finch
This is a true chine collé. It incorporates pieces of newspaper which add a subdued tone and visual texture. The two versions of the print are slightly different by the colour composition. The left one is lighter which makes the finch stand off from the background. The right one uses an earth colour background and to me this makes the image space more narrow, less airy. It’s interesting to see how the choice of colour affects the spatial effect.
Stephanie Flier: Linocut & chine collé
Springtime window (2013): The print has also an embossed effect. The motif has many linear elements. I wouldn’t have believed that lines in linocuts work so well. This aspect of the print is similar to my prints for the combination mono and linoprint which also emphasizes lines, but this print includes more interesting textures than mine.
The tulips (2013) also feature many linear elements. They remind me a bit of Art Déco, but are less stylized, more organic.
With springtime window and the tulips one can only guess what the chine collé elements are. Maybe the coloured flower buds?
The third print, Little Sister, big sister (2011) includes a handwritten or photocopied piece of paper on a first layer print in a different colour, then a linoprint on top. I particularly like the title because it reminds me of a song by Elvis Presley – Little sister don’t you do what your big sister does. But I don’t know how the title relates to the print’s subject. Despite this ambiguity, I find this as well as the other two prints visually very appealing.
References
Andy Warhol / Mick Jagger (1975) series: https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/pop-culture/andy-warholmick-jagger-34/3043/ (accessed 23 March 2015)
Naila Smith : http://naylasmith.deviantart.com/art/Finch-Chine-Colle-266661857 (accessed 23 March 2015)
Stephanie Flier: http://stephanieflierartist.weebly.com/prints.html (accessed 23 March 2015)