Daniel Voelker is Fluent In the Language of Collage Making

Daniel Voelker’s unique style of collage making employs various media sources, such as charcoal and printmaking. Interested in the manipulation of tone, line, and shape, his collage process oscillates between quick improvisational moves and carefully planned revisions. “I rarely have a preconceived idea of what to make,” admitted Voelker in a piece he wrote for Artsy Shark. “Rather, I let the pieces show me how they want to be arranged.”

Inspired by graffiti, urban decay, and music, Voelker experiments with his source material, challenging our ideas about collage art. “I developed a process to fix the charcoal to paper to ensure its reliability as a medium for collage,” he explains. “The drawings are cut and arranged, layer after layer until a finished work emerges.”

With printmaking, Voelker first makes the prints with ink or paint, after which he cuts and collages them into complex layers with intersecting lines and spaces. According to him, this work involves an improvisational process of placing the pieces on a board, then arranging them as he sees fit.

Some of his work consists of white ovals or circles framing them (which are also collaged). According to Voelker, these ovals represent portals, through which the viewer is invited to look inside and catch a glimpse of something on the other side.

“I consider collage a language,” he says “and find interest in how individual pieces come together to convey a story.” Take a closer look: