How to Craft a Poem with Found Art & Words

When you want to write a poem but don't know where to begin

“Hearts in Weeds” Paint, paper, photo collage, 2019 j.l. collins

There’s more than one way to write a poem.

Poiema--from which we get the word ‘poem’--is Greek for “a thing that is made,” (which is the inspiration for naming this Substack, by the way).

“Made things” can be creations with pens or paint or paper, offering a reflection of what’s in our heads and on our hearts and showing up on the page.

For a number of years I’ve been practicing a way of poetry-making that has become a welcome outlet for my creativity. Using cut-out words and pictures from old books and magazines, glitter glue, watercolors, stamps and more, I began a new way of crafting my thoughts on the blank page. Art Journaling is a wonderful expression.

This practice has produced the work shared in photos below. Not necessarily ‘poetry,’ but various expressions of a made thing.

Poems & Prayers on Paper

Folks often feel intimidated about how to write a poem—I get it; I’ve been there—and they don’t know where to begin. Art journaling is a way to venture into expressing oneself with words (and pictures) both and thus create a poem, a made thing.

The Apostle Paul encourages us to pray without ceasing, yes? Prayer is a place of listening, being tuned into God at all times in our “walking around life,” as Eugene Peterson coined it. I’ve often looked at art journaling as “poems and prayers on paper.”

Playing with paper, pictures and paint is a practice that engenders a different kind of listening to create something with written, visual or artistic materials then respond and capture what God is speaking. Sometimes, most times, we don’t know what God is saying until we take time to listen. The act of moving things around with pictures, glue, paint or pen and pencil can often brings things to the surface. Have you ever thought, “I didn’t know what I thought until I saw it written on the page?” Art Journaling provides that kind of discovery.

Because sometimes we don't know what God is saying until we see it.

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How To ‘Write” a poem with found words and pictures

To begin, if you can, take 15 minutes to make a mess. Like this one.

MATERIALS:

• A blank journal or page, at least 8 x 5 ish in size

• Old magazines and books. Maps, menus, calendars, church bulletins, junk mail--all are a good source for print and pictures.

• Scissors, glue sticks

• Felt markers or pens (I use the Art-n-Fly fine line drawing pens that write over watercolor)

• Glitter glue

• Rubber letter stamps and ink pad

• Stencils

• Watercolors or acrylics

• Any other 'arty' material you can think of 

BEGIN

• Trust that God will begin to speak to you, helping you pray on paper and turn on your favorite instrumental music while you listen

• Look through the flotsam and jetsam you’ve assembled; cut out (or tear) pictures and words.

• Sort through your piles and move things around. Certain things will speak to you; WORDS will come to the surface. PICTURES will have something to say.

• Glue the words or phrases in place. Place the pictures where you please. Sit back.

• What do you see? What did God say?

My friend, you have a poem.

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As evidenced by the illustrations on this page, I didn't know what God was speaking to me until after the work was done. When I finished the watercolor, cut paper and glitter collage pictured at the top, God spoke the phrase to me, 'heart in the weeds.' I thought of how my heart is hidden in Christ, even in the middle of a weedy world. And that's how our (sometimes unspoken) prayers show up on paper.

NOTE: Everything I know about praying on paper/art journaling came from Christine Hiester, Spiritual Director and Workshop leader at Refine {the Retreat} founded by Kris Camealy.