Photomontage facts for kids
A photomontage is a cool way to make a new picture by combining parts of different photos. Imagine cutting out pieces from several pictures and then gluing them together to create one brand new image! Sometimes, this new picture is even photographed again so it looks like a single, seamless photo.
Today, we often do this using computer software like Photoshop. This digital method is called "compositing." People sometimes just say "photoshopping" when they mean making a picture from different parts. However, if you just combine photos to show more of a single scene, that's usually not called a photomontage.
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What is Photomontage?
A photomontage is a special kind of art where you take parts of different photographs and put them together to make a completely new image. It's like making a puzzle with pictures, but you get to decide how the pieces fit!
How Photomontage Works
In the past, artists would physically cut out parts of printed photos. They would then glue these pieces onto a new surface, overlapping them to create interesting scenes. The final combined image could then be photographed again to make it look like one single, original photo.
Digital Photomontage
Today, most photomontages are made using computers. Artists use special software programs to combine images digitally. This process is often called "compositing." It allows artists to blend photos together very smoothly, making it hard to tell where one picture ends and another begins.
Why Artists Use Photomontage
Artists use photomontage for many reasons. They might want to tell a story, share a message, or create a dream-like image that isn't possible in real life. It's a powerful way to combine different ideas and create something truly unique.
For example, an artist might combine a picture of a fish with a picture of a bicycle to make a funny or thought-provoking image. It lets them explore their imagination and show things in new ways.
History of Photomontage
Photomontage has been around for a long time. Artists started experimenting with it in the 1800s, soon after photography was invented. They found creative ways to combine different photos to make new stories or artistic statements.
Early Examples
One of the earliest famous photomontages was created by Oscar Rejlander in 1857. It was a large picture made from many different negatives. Another artist, Henry Peach Robinson, also made famous photomontages in the mid-1800s. These early works often told stories or showed moral lessons.
Photomontage in the 20th Century
In the early 1900s, artists from movements like Dada and Surrealism used photomontage a lot. They loved how it could create strange and unexpected images. Artists like Hannah Höch and John Heartfield used photomontage to comment on society and politics.
Political Messages
During times of war or political change, photomontage became a strong tool for artists to share their opinions. They could combine images of leaders, events, and symbols to create powerful messages that made people think.
Related pages
Images for kids
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The Two Ways of Life, a moralistic photo montage of Rejlanders own work, 1857-a choice between vice (at left) and virtue (at right)
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Robinson's Fading Away (1858)
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Carnival, South End Exhibition Rink, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February 1899; The carefully prepared photomontage composite was a Notman specialty, each figure being photographed separately and then combined as a single image
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A 1950 photomontage by Grete Stern
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BMW M8 GTE endurance race car at Munich airport in 2021
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Hannah Höch, Cut with the Kitchen Knife Dada Through the Last Weimar Beer Belly Cultural Epoch of Germany, 1919
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Gustav Klutsis, design for a stand at the entrance to an exhibition, 1920
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El Lissitzky, The Constructor, 1924
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Composite of 11 different images
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Perspective run
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Photomontage showing what a complete iceberg might look like under water
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Fotocollage
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A modern photomontage
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Showing five digits instead of four
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See also
In Spanish: Fotomontaje para niños
