✂️Upcoming Symposium - Words as Pictures, Collage as Text at Kolaj Fest New Orleans 2026✂️

⚡️Upcoming Symposium - Words as Pictures, Collage as Text at Kolaj Fest New Orleans 2026⚡️
Friday, 2-3pm (CDT), June 12th, 2026,
At: Cafe Istanbul, 2372 St Claude Ave,
Room 252, New Orleans, LA 70117,
United States.

This year I am really honored to be presenting at Kolaj Fest 2026 on the rich interplay of literary and collage techniques within my creative practice. I will speaking of how together they inform core elements of several major projects and how we can “change creative channels” to come unstuck; driving new inspiration and discover unexpected paths of exploration. This will be my part of a symposium on “Words as Pictures, Collage as Text” alongside other amazing writers and collage artists, Kirk Read, Christine Karapetian, Astrid Bant and Trish Crapo.

Check out a note below from the organizers about the Symposium and my part in it:

”For COLLAGE::BOOKS which took place in October 2025 in Montreal, Brooklyn, New York collage artist Jennella Young wrote, “Publishing is more than documentation. It is itself a creative act that shapes how ideas are assembled and carried. It’s almost its own form of collage. Artist books and zines are not secondary to exhibitions for my art work—they are exhibitions in their own right—the kind you can carry and share and hopefully treasure.” Not simply illustration, when artists pair writing and artwork, an alchemy occurs where the words can become pictures and the collage can become text. Visual literacy and textural literacy mingle and build a new world for viewers and readers in the cosmology of the contemporary art project. During this panel, we will hear from collage artists and writers with overlapping, integrated practices.” 

Writing and publishing has consistently flowed through Castlebar, County Mayo, Ireland artist, writer, and integrative psychotherapist Anthony D Kelly‘s practice. At Kolaj Fest New Orleans 2025, he presented the project, “Lexicon of Wonder” which will soon be published as a book. For each of the collages in his “Rare Monster Sighting Archives,” Kelly writes a fictional “Recorded Sighting” report. He collaborated on the children’s book, Fleadom Flea Circus, with Marta Janik. He has also been an active contributor to Kolaj Magazine and Kolaj Institute’s Collage Illustration and PoetryxCollage projects. Kelly will speak about the role writing plays in his collage practice. 

For more about the Symposium itself CLICK HERE.

To learn more about about the wondrous Kolaj Fest and to download the festival events program
CLICK HERE.

For more from the Kolaj Institute and Magazine CLICK HERE.

🎪🔍 Children’s Book Project Announcement: Fleadom Flea Circus🔎🎪

🎪🔍 Children’s Book Project Announcement: Fleadom Flea Circus🔎🎪

Roll Up! Roll Up!
Many great things happened this year, and one of the best was to begin collaborating on a children’s book with my dear friend Marta Janik. Drawing on our dual interests in illustration and circus culture we have delved into the unusual universe of Flea Circuses to develop a visually rich and vibrant world. The book is almost complete and some of our illustrations have won a place in an upcoming exhibition resulting from this years Clairvoyants children’s book competition. This competition is hosted bi-annually by the Dwie Siostry publishing house and our project was chosen as one of the most interesting projects out of 554 submissions!

Flea Circuses once existed throughout the world and actually involved trained fleas performing tricks! There was also a variant of these Circuses which utilized magnets and other mechanical devices to simulate the presence of performing fleas. These were known as “Humbug Shows”. Although the amount of Flea Circuses in existence today can be counted on one hand, they were strange and fascinating phenomenon with a history all of their own.

More about our book below:
“Fleadom is a raucous, fun fueled journey through life at an extravagant Flea Circus. In this magical setting, fleas, animals and humans all collaborate as equals to perform wondrous and reality defying stunts. Under our little big top we learn that creatures and people don’t have to be big in size to be important or to do amazing things. 

Rich with tiny details, hidden meanings, and historical and cultural references, this is a book that invites parents and children to delve into its pages and explore its magical world again and again, each time finding some new and interesting details that elaborate on the colourful universe within. 

Small and unusual wonders do exist when we pay careful attention to the world around us. For example, I invite you to consider a flea learning to juggle on a unicycle, and then tell me you are not impressed.”

Don’t get too itchy! More Fleadom Coming Soon!

For more of the wonderful work of Marta Janik get your act together by Clicking Here.