Collage for Planescape 1972

Erro made this collage from cut-and-pasted printed matter. In this case, the paper scraps are largely images of aircraft. The effect is overwhelming. Hundreds of planes jockey for space, creating a chaotic image of military-industrial production. Think of all the labor, all the natural resources, that went into the manufacture of these war machines. And then reflect that Erro has simply re-processed them, snipping them from magazines and catalogues. Collage is an inherently democratic medium. It takes imagery that is already out in the world – part of the collective visual consciousness – and re-organizes it according to the artist’s will. Yet this strategy also points to a certain futility. The sheer number of planes makes them seem disposable, as easy to shred as they are to produce. Erro’s work reminds us that making is always also unmaking.