my life wrapped up in 2 dimensions

Mulberry Beach

Acrylic on canvas,  2012

Shane and Peter Dolch, Chappaque, New York

Lemteyoso, First Assemblage
Mixed media on burlap, 2014

act of making series

Amanda Ignot, Carrollton, Missouri

A Thinking Reed's Response 
Acrylic, sand, cardboard on panel, 2003

part of core series 
Frank Raasch, Norborne, Missouri

Figure In Light

Acrylic on panel, 2002

Gaylyn Alexander, Carrollton, Missouri

Bellingham, Washington Bay

Acrylic on canvas, 2004 

Rose and Mike Fozen, Carrollton, Missouri

Collage #4

Mixed media on panel, 1998

Nick Albrecht, Norborne, Missouri

Two minutes

 

Airstrike: God's Love Breaks Me Apart
Acrylic, metal, asphalt, glitter on panel, 1998

part of core series 
Amanda Ignot, Carrollton, Missouri

Missouri River, West of Floyd Levee

Acrylic on watercolor paper, 2010

Jo and Ben Marxhausen, Lincoln, Nebraska

Playskool (Rein and Karl)
Acrylic on panel,  2007
Sid Kamprath, Seward, Nebraska
 

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monday - collage introduction

It was the man who used train tickets, labels, and envelopes that inspired me to make the following triptych piece.

First of three collages I had in the 1979 senior art show at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. 6 x 4 inches. Untitled. Mixed media. Karl Marxhausen.

Second of three collages. 6 x 4 inches. Untitled. Mixed media. Karl Marxhausen. 1979

Third of three collages. 6 x 4 inches. Untitled. Mixed media. Karl Marxhausen. 1979

Kurt Schwitter. An art maker in Germany during the 1920s. It was the types of materials he used in his collages that interested me. One sample of his work, below. (courtesy of Google Search, accessed March 14, 2017)

I remember painting tempura on paper. After it dried I experimented with the tearing the edge by hand. I did several collages using torn edges at UN-L.

 24 x 36 inches. Untitled. Tempura on paper. Karl Marxhausen. 1979 

24 x 36 inches. Untitled. Tempura on paper. Karl Marxhausen. 1979 Solo show at Mark Four Gallery, Lincoln, Nebraska.

These works were part of the power point I gave to the fifth grade class Monday morning, March 6th, 2017.

 

My wife, Jan Marxhausen, was beginning a lesson in collage and asked me to introduce the subject with her fifth and sixth grade art students. 

In addition to the train tickets of Kurt Schwitters, we looked at the the dried plants of Daniel Griffith. Griffith had searched for items of texture, color, size, and shape around the farm where he lived. Materials were placed next to each other like a chain of color, next to next to next. So, collage required a different kind of thinking. As artists we describe what we look at as THICK and THIN LINES. ROUGH and SMOOTH textures. TRIANGLES and SQUARES and CIRCLES.

During the afternoon session I had volunteers come up and point out the shapes and lines in Griffith's work. Below closeup has wavy lines, red circles next to thick lines, and a white circle in the middle of an orange shape.  

A few years older than myself, Griffith lived in De Witt, Missouri. He has been constructing works like this for years, below.

 

The presentations continued that week to other students in both fifth and sixth grades, respectively. A dozen students in each group. A total of eight classes that week. I made adjustments to keep it fresh for myself. March 6th to 10th. Next day, Tuesday.

vertical color tab #4

This fourth one
has
shapes
either IN FRONT OF
or BACK BEHIND
the vertical line.
I enjoy
this creation
of space
and
depth. 

 Vertical Color Tab #4 by Karl Marxhausen,

12 inches tall by 5 inches wide, 2014

vertical color tab #3

Vertical Color Tab #3 by Karl Marxhausen,
100 inches tall by 4 inches wide, 2014.
double click on images to enlarge

This third one uses
the letter M for Marxhausen
and a pattern of
same color slashes.
Shapes
are either IN FRONT OF
or BACK BEHIND
the vertical line.
The PLACEMENT
of one color NOTE
and the next ONE
and
the next
BELOW that.

color

notes

to enjoy

from

top to

bottom.

vertical color tab #2

Vertical Color Tab #2 by Karl Marxhausen,

102 inches tall by 4 inches wide, 2014.

DOUBLE CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE

 This second one veers right
and curves to the left.
Diagonals
are either IN FRONT OF
or BACK BEHIND
the vertical line.
The PLACEMENT
of one color NOTE
and the next ONE
and
the next
BELOW that.

color

notes

to enjoy

from

top to

bottom.

vertical color tab #1

The students at my day job had been gluing colored construction paper to a shoe box to hold their Valentine cards from fellow classmates. I gathered up the scraps and began to make a vertical collage off one long long long long long long strip of construction paper that went up up up, almost to the ceiling. DOUBLE CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE.

Vertical Color Tab #1 by Karl Marxhausen,

105 inches tall x 3 inches wide, 2014

color

notes

to enjoy

from

top to

bottom.