Could collage save the internet?

Reflecting on Inner Demons

When odd faces started appearing on my thermal prints last year I decided to see where they were leading me. It was a printmaking experiment. I joked that these black and white collages were Rorschach tests, clues to understanding my inner demons. So that’s what I called the project. By the end I had over 100 postcard sized faces. I guess I had more demons than I realized.

Inner Demons by Ade Hanft

Tell me if this feels like you. Your thoughts are constantly turning into oncoming traffic, yanking on the steering wheel, and slamming on the brake and gas pedals at the same time. Even when you regain control, nobody really gets you. You feel alone, misunderstood, and you might be considering giving up. I’ve been there, and I find myself revisiting it more often than I want to admit.

My recent collab with

Duane Toops

has introduced me to the warmth of the collage community on Substack. To find supportive, likeminded creators is such a rare blessing and I want to thank my new followers and friends. It reminds me of the early days of blogs before the algorithms fractured us into lonely echo chambers. It could be my imagination, but it seems like collage artists might have the solution for happiness, perhaps it could even save the dying internet.

The technique goes like this:
You take one small scrap at a time, examine it, appreciate it, then find a safe place for it to land. Then you let it go, and hope that something beautiful comes from it.

Stay creative. Your friend,
Ade

P.S. If you want to see all my Inner Demon prints in one place, I have a gallery on my website at adrian3.com. And if you are a paid subscriber, reach out and I’d be happy to send you a digital print from the collection.