“Photography might seek the perfect moment, but collage is looking beyond reality” – interview with the Romanian artist Carla Schoppel 

I have always been fascinated by the collages — the way that some definite things (like images or random cuts) are transformed into beautiful works of art. And, seeing all these wonderful works of Romanian (and international) artists I knew I have to find out more. Therefore, I talked to one of the promising #RomanianArtist – Carla Schoppel about the freedom you have when you re-image a new world in a collage, about her beginnings and the Romanian collage art scene. 

Carla Schoppel, @schoppelcut / Collage Festival „The New 20’s” – at Green Hours – until the end of November – more than 80 Romanian and international artists – https://collagefestival.ro/ 

Why collages, from all forms of art? What does a collage would say more than a painting, for example, or an artistic photograph?

For me, collage is more approachable for several reasons — though not because it says more than a painting or a photograph. What I love about collage is that it doesn’t require a controlled space, and its materials are incredibly accessible, given that it’s essentially based on a form of recycling. In addition, collage gives me a greater freedom to rearrange reality.

There’s also this subtle prejudice from the public, that making a collage is just a simple craft activity — which, paradoxically, liberates me. Cutting and gluing already begin from the belief that I’m not constrained by rules, even though, of course, composition principles and stylistic structures still exist (even if we like to say that in art the only rule is to follow no rules). I only agree with that to the extent that creation begins with impulse, but afterward, a critical eye is necessary — a process of filtering, of seeing whether the work holds up compositionally or conceptually, beyond the simple expression of a world. I don’t think a collage says more; I believe each medium is chosen for its own reasons. Photography might seek the perfect moment, but in the case of collage and painting, I wouldn’t say it’s about the same thing — both are looking beyond reality.

How did you discover this special world of collages? When did you do your first one? 

I discovered the world of collage through art books and films, and later through my own play — through active daydreaming — noticing how seemingly contradictory images can compose a new narrative, with different meanings. Then, my first consciously made collage came in 2017.

What is first for you: the idea or the materials (cutouts, paper etc)? 

Always the materials. They challenge me, they make me think: look how this image fits next to that one. A collage doesn’t tolerate absolute control. When I cut, I’m not searching for a specific image — the idea emerges along the way, as a reaction to the mélange of images I’m leafing through.

How many collages you have on your table at once (and working on them)? And what the artwork that was most difficult to finish? Why? 

I usually work on several at the same time, though I never plan it that way. It happens because I start one collage and keep discovering images that fit into other visual stories — so I might begin one but end up finishing five. I’m not sure which one was the hardest to complete, but I think of Athletics of the Inner World — once I started it, I couldn’t stop until it was done. Because of its complexity, having cut out dozens of figures, it was difficult to glue everything down under the constant stress that I might make a mistake, forget the order of the layers, and so easily ruin the entire composition.

What do you think the Romanian collage scene has to offer to the international artistic world? What is good, what is less perfect here?

The Romanian scene came with a kind of unpretentiousness that made it more authentic. Since this form of art wasn’t very popular until a few years ago, artists relied solely on the need to create — beyond any calculation of market chances, beyond traditional dialogue spaces, beyond a solid infrastructure of critics and galleries that could sustain such a fragile visual language.
Maybe that’s precisely what has kept collage in a free zone, outside academic rigidity, where we can still experiment without fear of public disapproval. Thanks to the emergence of Bucharest Collage Collective and Collage Festival, collage has gained extraordinary national visibility, and I see more and more artists every year coming from different fields and expressing themselves beautifully through collage.
I also love the fact that I don’t see competition among creators, as I often do in photography, painting, or sculpture. Here, there’s more of a sense of kinship — as if every artist understands that there are multiple styles and techniques, and that any comparison with another is simply unnecessary.

Analog or digital? Analog.
Romanian artist you admire is… FIKL. 
International artist that you love is… Anselm Kiefer. 
The magazine you cut most of your pieces for collages is… Mari pictori.
The collage on your work table now is about… body.