Chigirie

By Lori Schue

Chigirie (chee-gee-ree-aye) is an old Japanese art of paper tearing to create a collage picture. The picture may be of a landscape, a flower or even an animal or person. There is no other material involved except paper and glue. Layers of tissue or rice paper are torn and glued to a surface to create a collage of colors and shapes. A collage is simply a work of art made from many pieces of papers or objects.

You will need:

Paper
Tissue papers, rice papers
(Thin papers such as tissue and rice make a true chigirie collage.)
Pencils
Stencil shapes optional
Glue sticks or Crayola® No Run Glue with a brush

Use your imagination to help create a chigirie project. First lightly draw the shape you wish to make as a guide. You may want to draw a fish, flowers, etc. Now decide which tissue paper you will use for each area. Tear small pieces to fill in each area. Hold your fingers close to where you want the tear for more control. Use a glue stick or liquid glue and a brush to place the torn tissue pieces. Overlap the pieces to create colors and textures in your collage.

Visit Joan Matsui, a chigirie artist, on the internet: www.chigirie.com

New Art Words to use: Chigirie, Collage, Create