Mixed media collage offers more than artistic opportunities.
The ensuing, inspired thoughts about pursuing a mixed media collage practice, shared below, have been churning around in my head for quite some time … but even more so as we all dip more than our toes into this unfolding, new year ahead.
Modern life is, in some ways, crumbling
Look around and it won’t take you long to see a steady state of societal fragmentation.
Sometimes, these observations are real and physical … as in we can SEE fragmentation happening with our own eyes in real-time; other instances of fragmentation are more abstract … as in things just FEEL like they’re fragmenting and this feeling or thought can result in discomfort or angst.
Before you continue reading, keep in mind that fragmentation isn’t about “just change.”
Change is an inescapable and constant feature of all life, so that’s not what I mean by fragmentation.
When I say “fragmentation,” I’m referring to the disconnection or chopping up of what use to be “shared ideas” and “shared experiences.” Things that once were unifying now feel not as unifying, and this notion can be applied to so many aspects of everyday life, not just politics.
Today, entrenched niches, differing sides, and contrasting groups are more “in” … and holistic collectives that embrace contrast aren’t as “in.”
The slice-and-dice nature of these fragmented groups feels even more fragmented when they’re doused in disparate, 24×7 streams of information and “news.”
Adjusting to this tidbits-style of living — and transforming the tidbits into meaningful and nourishing experiences (aka making lemons from lemonade as best as one can) — can, for some, feel daunting.
And for others still, even scary, disheartening or exhausting.
close up detail of mixed media collage combining vintage ephemera, handwritten notes, and modern day receipts (@2026 by mayra yadir)
This is where a mixed media collaging practice offers NEW opportunities
Most people consider mixed media as a term specific to one’s art practice, and while the art domain has its fair share of mixed media masterpieces throughout time, I believe a mixed media art practice offers so much more than mere aesthetic outputs.
The practice, for one, nurtures imagination and teaches you to expect unexpected possibilities.
At the same token, a mixed media practice also helps to reinforce vital societal concepts that are helpful, relevant, and necessary for not just managing or getting by in life but actually thrive and flourish … despite today’s fragmentation challenges.
“How so?” you ask 🙂
Here are two (2) ways for you to reflect upon and consider:
1) Disparate pieces (or mediums) *CAN* blend beautifully
A mixed media collaging practice reminds us that working with pronounced contrasts across textures, colors, or varying shapes CAN ABSOLUTELY PRODUCE BEAUTIFUL AND PLEASING RESULTS. You can take a strip of this (let’s say a 1970s packaging label) and put it next to something that maybe you thought would never pair well (like an antique postcard from the Victorian 1800s); but then you put them both together and somehow, their combination suddenly works in great harmony … more so than you EVER expected.
2) Bonding and unification are INESCAPABLE
No matter how the fragmented combinations are arranged and displayed, ALL THE FRAGMENTS:
- must be adhered to each other in order to not shift and stay harmoniously in place; and
- are held holistically and structurally together by one unifying substrate lying beneath the composition (visible or not).
In these scenarios, collaging results, no matter how beautiful or appealing, cannot survive without BONDING and UNIFICATION, period.
These mixed media collaging practices, and outcomes, lend themselves so well to maneuvering the weighty challenges of modern societal life
Art practices, as a whole, are good for us in so many ways … for pursuing not just mindful thinking mindsets but to also replenish, and nurture, one’s creative spirit.
But mixed media collaging practices in particular cultivate unique opportunities that lend themselves well when expanded beyond visual outcomes and towards managing through the fragmentation of today’s societal scenarios.
At least, for me, that’s what mixed media collaging inspires … and I hope it can, and will, inspire you in these same regards as well.
I invite readers to create space, set intention, and give themselves permission to understand these ideas and practice them beyond the canvas 🖤
Yours in mixed media,
