From flowery headdresses to botanical guises to houses perched on the tippy-top of tree stumps, Julie Liger-Belair’s collages (previously) invite us into a whimsical world. In paper and found objects, she dives into personal stories and the emotional connections binding us to nature, place, and a sense of belonging.
In her Scrappy Blablah series, for example, the artist compiles various cutouts into playful compositions that provide a way of processing external information, coming about “when the paper scraps on my table decide to embody my feelings about the world outside my studio,” she says. “But they also provide the antidote.”
Liger-Belair and her family recently visited Vietnam, spurred by their eldest daughter, who was adopted from the country and hadn’t been back since. New works inspired by the trip include larger collages with painted elements on wood panels, in addition to found objects, vintage photos, and snapshots the artist took on the trip.
She continues themes of home and comfort through the motif of the house, which often encompasses figures, flowers, patterns, and vines that unfurl beyond their confines. In other compositions, the house shrinks in size, as giant mushrooms and blossoms coexist alongside woodland creatures in fanciful landscapes.
Liger-Belair has also revisited ideas from earlier assemblage work, making small, three-dimensional pieces in sardine tins and other found boxes. “I have always loved collecting things and using them in pieces,” she tells Colossal. “My experiments with resin and ceramics have also made their way into this series (called) tinned stories, and they are more fun, dreamlike pieces.”
Find much more on Liger-Belair’s website, Instagram, and Behance.
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