True Collage

My immediate concept of a "collage" is my middle school notebook. It was covered in words and quotations and celebrities and cartoons, all arranged meticulously so that no empty space showed through, and clear tape went over the top to keep it all down. (A small part of me is hoping that some of the girls in the class remember what I'm talking about; at least at my school, it was the popular mode of decoration.)

Because of the image I have now associated with the idea of "collage," I have a difficult time realizing that in fact collage is much more than the gaudy magazine pages I spliced together. And again, because of the semi-negative perception I have of collages, though I am working to break down those misconceptions, I have decided that my collage for this project must have a tangible, obvious sense of structure.

Confession #2: I was really trying to avoid talking in depth about my collage on here. I know that's silly, but blame it on paranoia or competitiveness or whatever, but I don't want anyone to steal my idea. Of course, typing that statement I realize just how silly it is. All of you have just as much integrity as I do, if not more, and you all have just as much creativity as I do, probably more, so you have no reason to want my ideas anyways.

I plan on making several different collages, one in each of the giant letters "D-O-N-A-T-E." I have already figured out that in one letter I would like to make a collage of food packaging waste -- bottle caps, can tabs, wrappers, etc. This particular element of my board I am hoping will convey the reality of how much food we have and consume on a regular basis, nearly moment-to-moment, and through this, I hope to motivate people to donate out of their surplus.

In class on Thursday I also had another idea. Anyone familiar with The Hunger Games? (It's coming out in theaters!) Anyways, I am considering working that theme into the design, too, both on a symbolic and literal level. The literal level should be at least partly obvious - the people suffering in East Africa are hungry, starving. Symbolically, they, too, like the characters in the book, are being denied aid and relief by their own government. It might seem like a little bit of a stretch, but I'm still working it out in my head.

And for those of you interested in the movie, the trailer is below! :)