Three Collages for LMAC #195

I had a little fun this week with the template photo. LMAC has resumed its collage contest after a brief winter break. Entries for the contest are pouring in as community members respond to the amazing template image:

Template Image, by @shaka, for Round #195

While I don't compete in the contest, I generally am inspired to create a collage. This week is no different. To me, the vine stalks in the picture look like grotesque people, or gargoyles

Gargoyle on Wasserspeier Kathedral, Köln, Germany

_Pixabay

Gargoyles on Notre Dame Cathedral, Strasbourg, France

_{Yair Haklai, on Wikimedia Commons. CC Attribution-Share alike 4.0 International license}

Apparently, gargoyles could be simply ornamental. They were supposed to ward off evil spirits. More commonly, it seems (according to Wikipedia) gargoyles had an important function. They would serve as drains, and the spouts at the end of the carving would lead rain water away from a building.

It looks like the gargoyle featured in my first picture here, from Wasserspeier, was ornamental, because I don't see a spout. But the gargoyles from Notre Dame do seem to have spouts.

My Collages
I thought of any number of scenes in which I could use these gargoyle-type shapes. On this page you'll find three samples of the ideas I came up with. To make these collages, I used a combination of public domain sources and the wonderful LIL Gallery.

From Public Domain Sources

• Ballroom _pixabay

• Bowtie _{Shiba on Pixabay}

• Ball gown _Pixabay

• Ball gown2 _Pixabay

• Ball gown3 _Pixabay

• Ball gown4_Pixabay

From LIL, the LMAC Image Gallery

• Sparks
  @yaziris
  https://www.lmac.gallery/lil-gallery-image/7629

• Duck
  @muelli
  LMAC Image Gallery

Talking Stalk #1: Do you know where that puppy came from?
Talking Stalk #2: No. It was here this morning when I woke up. Never seen it before.
Talking Stalk #1: Looks like that duck is trying to help it.
Talking Stalk #2: I hope they clear out soon.
Talking Stalk #1: Yeah. We don't need ducks around here. Hate it when they land on my head.
Talking Stalk #2: Ditto

• Duck
  @muelli
  LMAC Image Gallery

• Puppy
  @muelli
  LMAC Image Gallery

Silly, right? But great fun. When I make a collage, I let my imagination free and just enjoy myself. I hope someone is as entertained in looking at these (not likely) as I was in making them.

LIL is not only a valuable image resource for the Hive community, but is also a way for community members to participate in LMAC. Anyone on Hive can contribute to the library and everyone can borrow from it. Learn about the procedure here.

Every week we offer prizes to fifteen finalists in the contest, but it's not only the prizes people create for. Just as I spent hours giving free vent to my imagination for this blog, others in the community have developed the habit of 'speaking' through collage.

As @shaka has said many times, everyone is an artist. I may not be an artist in the technical sense, but LMAC allows me to nurture my own unique artistic voice.

Thank you for reading. Peace and health to all.