I have already reported on my foray into collaging, which I can thank my good friend Martha for. But the practice merits an update and highlight. Indeed, in these times of uncertainty and limited activities, an almost-every-week Sunday evening collaging session with Martha has become a constant, and I’m loving it.

Some articles I have seen extoll the virtues of the “meditative power of collaging,” during which you lock yourself in a secluded and quiet room somewhere, freeing your mind of all else and becoming the art, or something like that. The heck with that. During our collaging sessions, via Skype, Martha and I work on our projects while we chat, gossip, update, complain, and laugh, all the while working away at our latest creations. Sometimes we consult each other on what our respective art works might still need to elevate them from good to great, and usually at the end we have a “big reveal” of what we’ve accomplished.

She’s more into creating larger, wall-worthy artwork. Being ever so practical, and knowing I’d never get around to adorning my walls with my creations, I’ve been making cards for friends and family. I have not kept any of these, but I take a photo of them each week for the record.

I don’t pretend that they are Picassos, or harbor any idea of starting my own Etsy shop. It’s just fun, a great way to stay connected to a smart, creative and endearingly quirky friend, and hopefully bring a smile to the recipients. I highly recommend “putting the pieces” together in this otherwise largely fragmented time.

Here are snaps of my January/February creations. FYI, the featured image collage at the top of this page is supposed to be Aeolus, god of the wind, which would take a whole new blog to explain. May he blow in some positive energy for us all!