Going Green with Art: Meg Coyle Makes Art from Recycled Magazines

"Couple by the Potomac" by Meg Coyle, a collage on paper, 18" x 24." Says Coyle: "I'm really getting into exploring different angles with my people collages - before I was pretty attached to the basic portrait composition where I focused in on the face of the sitter. Here the background has a pretty strong role and the figures are much smaller."

ALEXANDRIA, VA. - At the age of 23, local collage artist Megan Coyle has developed a technique where she takes ordinary magazine pages and turns them into works of art.

Her first major solo exhibition will be shown at the Fisher Gallery in the Schlesinger Arts Center in Alexandria.

The show, titled “Piece by Piece Figurative Collage,” opens May 14 and runs through June 13.

Del Ray Artist Meg Coyle is a rising artist just trying to make something of herself  in the world. She works primarily in the medium of collage, using a technique she calls "painting with paper."

The opening reception is on Saturday, May 22 from 3 pm to 5 pm. Megan will hold a short artist talk at 4 pm. The exhibition includes several 18”x24” collage works on paper. Each piece is made entirely from recycled magazines and depicts different figures interacting with the environment around them.

By using a technique she calls “painting with paper,” Megan creates colorful collages that reflect an influence from her formal training in painting. She recreates the look and feel of a painting through the manipulation of paper and magazine strips, where she cuts and pieces together shapes of paper to mimic brushstrokes. The work challenges traditional ideas of what makes a work of art a painting or a collage.

Megan Coyle grew up in Del Ray and attended T.C. Williams High School. She received a degree in Painting and Creative Writing from Elon University in 2008, and returned to Northern Virginia to begin her career as a professional artist. Another series of her figurative collages will be on display in July at the Art League in Old Town.