Abstract Realism Collage Art: From Commercial Object to Abstract Dreamscape

Shangwe · Abstract Realism Collage Art: From Commercial Object to Abstract Dreamscape

Red at Play (2023) © Nicole Moore

Red at Play
2023
Mixed Media Abstract Realism Collage
8 x 10 inches
Artist Book 1

Layers of Crimson: Finding the Rhythm in Red at Play

This post explores how a commercial image transforms into a contemporary mixed media dreamscape, showing that everyday objects can inspire imaginative artwork.

We are trained to look past the ephemera of daily life. The glossy pages of a magazine, designed to capture our attention for a fleeting second before the page turns, usually end up in the recycling bin. 

But in March 2023, a vibrant commercial fragment stopped me in my tracks. It was an advert for raspberry gin: a striking red bottle standing alongside a condensation-veiled glass, with a precise garnish of green cucumber and floating raspberries.

That one image formed the core of Red at Play. Through this mixed-media abstract realism collage, I dove into the push and pull between polished commercial order and the wild, unpredictable flow of emotion.

Creative Process: Mixing Realism and Abstraction

While making Red at Play, I lifted the image from its commercial world and plunged it into an abstract dreamscape, subverting it in the process. I wanted the bottle and glass to ground the viewer in something familiar. 

The surrounding mixed media became a playground for the mind: free, instinctive, and wild. I hoped the background would pulse with the energy of a lively room: laughter, clinking glasses, and swirling movement. 

Rather than simply framing the realism, the abstract forms interact with it, holding the fizz and spark of a moment frozen in time, like the fleeting delight of a cocktail.

Curated Cocktails and Intimate Spaces

Speaking of cocktails, it's ironic that I hardly ever drink except on rare occasions, yet I am drawn to the beauty of a well-made cocktail. Cocktail bars charm me more than pubs. Cocktails evoke celebration and elegance, their forms beckoning us into a world both familiar and tantalisingly distant. For me, cocktails are more than beverages; they are cultural symbols which combine art and ritual beyond what the glass holds. 

I vividly remember the closeness of sitting with loved ones at The Seed Library, a quiet Shoreditch bar, on my birthday in October 2025. Soft lighting cocooned us, glasses chimed gently, and the music drifted from jazz to reggae, even playing Police and Thieves by Junior Murvin (1976), whisking me back to the blues parties of the 1960s and 1970s. 

In that moment, nostalgia and belonging mingled with the thrill of celebration. The bartender moved with soft elegance, describing each ingredient with care and layering flavours with gentle artistry. He even scribbled the recipe on a business card for me. It felt as if making the drink was the real celebration.

I was mesmerised by the atmosphere, the bartender's careful stir, and the subtle pleasure as the final garnish landed. These occasions wrap me in comfort and connection, fuelling creativity in surprising ways. Memory, warmth, and belonging often inspire me to create atmosphere and story in my art.

Techniques & Materials: Layering the Narrative

My collages always begin with magazine cut-outs, usually garnered from stacks lying around the house. I search for images that ignite something in me and transform them. I become both collector and creator, giving scraps new life by reshaping, remaking, and recycling them. 

Through cutting, tearing, and layering transparent paints, I let the red palette of Red at Play quiver with energy and demand attention. The green of cucumber breathes in freshness and hints at renewal. White offers clarity along with momentary calm, like a fresh canvas or a gentle pause.

Knowing When It's Finished

Collage is both curation and creative destruction. I let shapes and colours lead the way, chasing a perfect balance or a trace of tension. I trust my first instincts, searching for combinations that surprise me or spark a hushed interaction within the piece.

If uncertainty lingers, I set the artwork aside and revisit it later with fresh eyes. If it still feels unresolved, I keep experimenting—shifting shapes or adding layers—until the piece's energy clicks into place. 

A collage feels finished when nothing more is needed, even if small imperfections remain. That quiet sense of completeness signals when to stop.

Reflections

Looking back at Red at Play three years after its creation in 2023, I realise it marks the moment when I stopped overthinking and just let myself play. 

The contrast between the rigid, manufactured lines of the raspberry gin bottle and the fluid, unpredictable nature of the abstract collage and paintwork taught me that balance doesn't mean perfection. 

Sometimes, art is just about capturing a mood and letting the colours throw a party on the canvas. I'm also struck by how much the collage feels like a time capsule—capturing not just a visual experiment, but a moment in my creative life.

Reflecting on Red at Play from 2026, I notice both what has changed and what endures in my artistic process. The interplay between commercial imagery and abstraction still fascinates me, yet the work's meaning has deepened over time.

What once felt like a spontaneous act of transformation now reveals layers of nostalgia, experimentation, and personal symbolism I hadn't fully grasped then.

Revisiting this piece reminds me that art's meanings are never fixed; they evolve with us, gaining new resonance as we move forward. The collage has become not just an object, but a record of the questions, curiosities, and joys that shaped my art practice in 2023.

Collage Tips

If you want to try collage, start by exploring your own magazines, packaging, or old books, which act as treasure troves of surprising images and textures. 

All you really need are some basic supplies: scissors to cut, a glue stick (I use UHU) or tape to attach your pieces, and a flat surface to work on. Tear or cut out shapes that call to you, arrange them loosely before glueing (I take a few snaps), and rely on your instincts.

To start simply, pick one colour that catches your eye. Search your materials for anything in that colour, maybe five pieces, big or small, and arrange them together on your page.

See what kinds of mood or story appear just by placing similar colours side by side. This low-pressure exercise is an easy way in and lets you play with shape, colour, and placement without worrying about the final result.

Once your collage is finished, consider how you might show it off or protect it. You can display your artwork simply by pinning it to a wall, framing it behind glass for protection, or using a clear folder or portfolio to preserve it from dust and bending. 

Seeing your collage in a frame or special spot in your home can make it feel complete and remind you of the creative energy that sparked it.

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I'd love to hear your thoughts on this piece. If you want to know more about the process or anything else mentioned in this post, feel free to leave a comment below, and I will respond.

George Floyd Two Years On — 'I Can't Breathe!' Abstract Art Series

I Can't Breathe! (2020) ⓒ Nicole Moore

Abstract Series
I Can't Breathe!
2020
Transparent Watercolours
10 x 8 inches

Today I'm sharing what compelled me to make I Can't Breathe!, which actually started off as a series of abstract art pieces that I completed in an A4 size sketchbook. This piece was made with Pelikan Transparent Watercolour Paints in June 2020.

The Painting:

The painting, I Can't Breathe! came first, the words came second, arriving on 2 June 2020.  I wrote them on my phone that evening. 

I used Canva graphic design software to add the words, to tie the painting together and produce it as a piece of mixed-media abstract art.

The Motivation:

The motivation for the I Can't Breathe! painting, evolved as the world watched the visceral horror of George Floyd's slow public execution under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer in the United States. 

The unforgettable sight cut through the global consciousness in a way not seen since the police attack and killing of Rodney King in 1991.

In June 2020, I posted a YouTube video:

In the video, I stated: 

I stand in solidarity with the African American community, the African Caribbean community, the black British community and with the black community throughout the world. 

I'm aligned to the spirit and soul of Black Lives Matter everywhere. I think the world has woken up at last and is listening.

On 2 June 2020, I also posted a photo of the I Can't Breathe! painting on my Instagram account stating:

Justice will only be achieved when the police culture in the US (and UK) is dismantled and those racist cops are expelled once and for all from brutalising Black people when they should be protecting them!

Violent Policing:

Two years on, where are we in the UK, particularly with regards to police brutality? There's no doubt that George Floyd's murder sparked an unprecedented global reaction, and the Black Lives Matter movement generated peaceful protests unheard of and unseen before. However, it is widely known in general that the use of force, especially but not exclusively by the Metropolitan Police, has increased over the last two years, with black people four times more likely to have force used against them than white people.

In my Birkbeck College — Culture, Community, Identity assignment completed in April 2022, I discussed the debates relating to police violence and stated that the issue of police accountability is at the heart of police violence and how outrageous it is that not one police officer in the UK has ever been convicted for the death of a black person in custody. 

BBC London News — Call to Action:

When the former Commissioner Cressida Dick announced her resignation in February 2022, I was relieved, because, for many years, she had been in denial that institutional racism existed in the Metropolitan Police Force. In February 2022, I felt compelled to respond to a call to action from BBC London News for 'Thoughts on policing priorities for London and the next Commissioner.' In response to the call to action, I wrote a lengthy email stating how I had lost faith and confidence in the leadership of Cressida Dick a long time ago not just because of her denial that the Metropolitan Police were institutionally racist, but because of her big errors of judgement which under her watch led to a litany of failures — too many to mention here. 

Racist Ideology:

I emphasised in my email to BBC London News how policing in the UK is steeped in racist (and sexist) ideology and until those ideologies are independently uprooted, deconstructed, evaluated and reviewed with appropriate cutting-edge research, together with significant action, then real change is not going to happen. And by change, I mean change that's in line with our current twenty-first century and the sophisticated demands of that twenty-first century, especially institutional racism, as it is one of the major concerns for black people living in the UK, particularly for young boys/men.

The roots of policing policies and practices have to be pulled up, and new thoughts and ideas that are revolutionarily inclusive and diverse have to be replanted. It's not just about placing a big dressing on an open wound or police culture, because that open wound has been festering for many years. It's about a complete change of police recruitment training and promotion policies that root out any racist, sexist, misogynistic, and homophobic attitudes and behaviours.

New Commissioner:

When it comes to a new Metropolitan Police Commissioner, it's not about gender, i.e. a new Commissioner being a woman or a man. It's about the right person to lead the Metropolitan Police; someone that has the vision to see a police force with all its systemic problems and failures, someone who has the ability and vision to make some very revolutionary decisions and critical changes within the force — changes which in reality stop new and unsuitable police recruits slipping through the net because of inadequate recruitment screening. 

It is absolutely imperative that the new Commissioner has the courage to shake up the current Metropolitan Police Force so that police officers are held accountable for their actions, and in serious cases of gross misconduct, are sacked rather than given a slap on the wrist and later on given the privilege of promotion. In other words, a complete overhaul and restructuring of the Metropolitan Police is crucial and urgent.

Comments welcome!

Thanks for reading.