Oblivion: What Flies Amongst Us Original by Emily Marbach
Mixed media collage
This piece is made up of about twenty different insects, a bird’s head, and a duck. Plus, a man I coloured in sitting atop a butterfly. I obscured the fowl mostly in the end. Often people are amazed by human creations; a beautifully designed silk scarf, a modern architectural wonder, a beer can label. But underneath our shoes or standing beside a leaf, are tiny creatures whose design is so intricate, the colour combinations startling, the shape so imaginative. But we rarely see them, notice them, look for them. And sadly, the number of species we are losing to insecticides, human habitation and industrialisation are vast. So that even if we did seek them out, there will no longer be there. My collage depicts the insects in black and white. Because without the colour we might never notice these little gems at all. The man sits on the back of a butterfly as somehow, we’ve decided that they are an integral part our human narrative. But otherwise, my man is blissfully ignorant of the rest, perhaps thinking of them all as pests. This petri dish project has moved me to become more appreciative and aware of the insects in my life.
I am an American artist who has spent the last 28 years living in England. Collage art and printmaking have been my passion for the last decade. I have been thinking about decorating a Haggadah ever since I can remember. Nearly every year growing up, I was given a Haggadah on Passover as an afikomen present. Some years were more exciting than others. I would like the Collage Haggadah to be the one that everyone is hoping to be given. It is packed with collages from my last few years of exploration of Pesach, the exodus from Egypt and the rituals of the seder.
www.collagehaggadah.com
www.instagram.com/collagenottinghill
www.twitter.com/emarbach
