Collage Tutorial: Trial and Error

Mixed media artist Hanoch Piven shows us how he creates, using trial and error

When it comes to creating, going with the first idea that you have can prevent you from experimenting and exploring new possibilities. Whichever discipline you’re working in, trying out different options is the only way to find surprising solutions. Don’t be scared of making errors: the process is just as important as the end product.

Hanoch Piven (@piven) is an award-winning artist whose work has been published in world-renowned publications such as Time, Rolling Stone and Der Spiegel. He has also published numerous children’s books, in which he crafts unique worlds, combining different materials and textures to create playful characters. In the following tutorial, he reveals the creative process behind his collages, using trial and error. Watch it below:

Getting to grips with trial and error

“A creative process should involve numerous mistakes,” insists Piven. It is only then that we know whether something works or not and that the final result is the right one.

Applying this to collage, the artist usually begins building his portraits with some basic shapes: cardboard that is cut out to be the base of the face and a few different objects to create the expression. When it comes to creating our character’s mouth, for example, why not try out 5, 10, or even 20 different options? Changing the object, its position, or the angle, we will achieve different and unexpected effects that make the face more interesting.

The idea is not to agonize over it beforehand, just let your creativity flow and don’t be afraid to try different options. Maybe the mouth you originally chose will end up becoming an eyebrow, or vice versa: don’t shut yourself off from different possibilities during your creative process.

If you enjoyed this tutorial, remember that you can learn fun ways to unblock and explore your creativity making portraits with Hanoch Piven in his course, Creativity Face to Face: A Playful Collage Journey.

You may be interested in:

- 10 Tips For Being More Productive Working From Home.
- 7 Apps for Remote Working.
- 5 Tips for Working From Home.