During my yard sale adventures in September I bought a suitcase for $1 in order to collage it, much like my room mate April had done to her own suitcase, and refurbish it inside. During the past few days I finally found time and worked on various pieces of the project.
I decided to use two issues of one of my favourite comic series, Demo, going with a black and white scheme. The two issues were the most touching of the stories told in Demo, so they had special resonance for me. The lighter side is from “Mix Tape,” which tells of a girl who committed suicide and left a farewell mix tape for her boyfriend. The darker side is from “Mon Dernier Jour Avec Toi,” the story of two lovers’ last night together. They’re both visually and narritively superb, and I wanted to preserve some of that in my collaging.
Inside the suitcase I replaced the bland light blue with the pleather of one of the curtains I had at my old apartment. This was the most challenging part of the project, taking three different glues and a fair amount of frustration. Other than some minor fixes, I’m pleased with the results, however.
I’d consider the project a big success. I always have my perfectionist tendencies flare up and focus on flaws when I create anything, but I’m rather surprised this turned out so nicely. I feel like a much classier nomad with a properly expressive suitcase. I’ll actually be taking it with me tomorrow morning when I head out of the province to New Brunswick.