While sourcing imagery for a client commission, I often come across photographs that aren't quite right for the brief but spark ideas of their own. This collection began with a batch of vintage portraits from the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, which inspired a series of anonymous female portraits reimagined through collage.

Working with a limited colour palette, I combined analogue printing, painting and scissors-cut paper with digital composition and colour treatment. Cut-out faces, painted backgrounds, raw edges and tactile textures bring the portraits together in a bold, graphic collection that embraces the beauty of imperfections.

I later explored bringing the static collage illustrations to life through animation, creating a simple tessellating GIF in Photoshop. Firstly zooming in on individual tiles before revealing the complete series. The movement introduces a different quality to the work, giving the anonymous figures a little more character while retaining the grace and elegance of the original compositions.

Self-initiated projects like this are an important part of developing my visual language and showcasing the breadth of my collage illustration practice to art directors and commissioners. They can also lead to new opportunities: this collection went on to inspire a subsequent client commission.