Homework Activity:  Collage 

“A picture is worth a thousand words.”  Pictures and the messages they carry are what make collaging a powerful medium for self discovery.  I often request clients to collage about an issue they are wrestling with, or even to clarify their life purpose. 

Step 1.  Identify what it is you want clarity around.  Jot it down.  For example, “What is my life purpose?”  “The perfect job for me.”  “Where do I experience joy?”  What does fun look like?”

Step 2.  Spend a few hours browsing and clipping images from magazines, brochures, photo albums, greeting cards, etc.  These images “resonate” with you in some way around the issue for which you are seeking clarity.  The images may jog a memory, make you laugh or smile, be of something you long for, etc.  Collect lots of images.

Step 3.  Sift through your clippings. Start to arrange them on a poster board or mid-large piece of heavy paper. 

Step 4. Title the collage with the thought you are focusing on.

Step 5. Do your final arrangement of images and glue them down.  The arrangement, as well as the images, may hold important insight for you.  While working on one of the first collages I did for myself questioning my life purpose, I kept moving an image of a candle around the page.  I liked the image but struggled to find where it “looked the best” to suit me.  It ended up in the center of the page. I realized later that the burning candle was the picture of my life purpose!  I am called to use my light to inspire others to let their lights shine in the world.  I am a warm and glowing person with a curiosity for enlightenment. No wonder the candle was in the center of the page! It represents what is at my core.

Step 6.  Look over your collage.  What does it tell you about the question or issue you created it around?  Jot down a few of your observations.

Step 7.  Wait a week.  Review the collage again.  What new observations can you make?  What new aha’s are revealed?  Revisit your collage periodically. You may continue to find new messages in the images and arrangement you created. You will likely be surprised by the impactful messages that jump off the page!