1. Classroom Educational
Tissue Paper Collage
Craft Kit
Classroom Educational
Component

2. About the Artist Crystal Wagner
Crystal is a contemporary interdisciplinary
artist who works in drawing,
printmaking, and installations.
She taught as a college art professor for
5 years before focusing exclusively
on her own art.
She uses organic (natural) forms and
alternative use of materials to
create her elaborate designs.
Her art has been exhibited all over the U.S. as well as Canada, including a recent show in Time Square in New York City.

3. Biotica
Installation
She doesn’t plan anything out until she sees the gallery in person and then she creates her design based on the space. For the installation at 108 Contemporary, she was really interested in the scale of the windows and wanted the installation to look like it was coming out from the windows.
First she unrolls chicken wire and creates the armature. Then she has assistants tear rolls of plastic birthday tablecloth material in two feet wide strips. Then, piece by piece, she tucks the plastic into the holes of the chicken wire to create the design.

4. Biotica
She chose the colors and forms based on the exotic world under the water. She takes biomorphic forms and elements and brings them all together in one piece.

5. Specimen I, II, & III
In addition to her large scale installations, she also makes shadow boxes that create a more intimate look at the same types of colors and forms. All of the paper used, she first screen prints and then hand cuts before putting them together in these boxes. Each of the boxes in this installation are titled “Specimen” to make it seem like they are specimens taken from the environment of the installation in an imaginary world.

6. Tissue Paper Collage: Materials
Speckled cardstock
Tissue paper in a variety of colors
Glue
Pencil and eraser

7. Step 1:
Using your pencil, sketch out a possible design for how you want your final page to look on the cardstock.

8. Step 2:
Gradually apply a small amount of glue to a portion of your paper.

9. Step 3:
Using your sketched design as a guide, apply the tissue paper to the cardstock.

10. Step 4:
Experiment with the tissue paper to get different textures by twisting, rolling, flattening, bunching, or folding it. You can also cut or rip your tissue paper into different size pieces.

11. Step 5:
Repeat steps 2-4 until your cardstock is covered with tissue paper and your picture is complete!

12. Other Resources: Crystal Wagner’s Website
Time lapse video of the installation
Artist talk with Crystal Wagner