Found imagery, cardstock & ephemera on antique picturebook paper
11 x 14 cm each
La Société Anonyme
Who is La Société Anonyme? We still don’t quite know. In today’s issue, the mystery maker behind these analog collages gives his first-ever interview. Improvisation drives each composition, where surreal moments interrupt the ordinary, creating strange new relationships between the subject and the viewer. The mundane becomes a portal, an invitation to question what we think we know about the world.
In the Words of the Artist
Found imagery on antique picturebook paper
24 x 18.3 cm
Thematically, my work is about losing touch with reality, things changing into something surreal or absurd. Many works portray people being made anonymous in some way, hence the name “Société Anonyme”.
I very much prefer doing collages by hand, although digital can be required when working with clients. Handmade collages just look better to me, and I love the physicality and improvisation in doing them. No ‘undo’ button; you have to get it right straight away! Or improvise to create something good out of your mistake. It causes me to make discoveries about colour, form, composition, or even the tactility of paper, which I can often use again in future work. I like my collages to be obvious as pieces of collage, and that you can easily see how the works are created.
Found imagery & pencil on antique picturebook paper
16.2 x 20.5 cm
I’ve always adored the cut-outs from Matisse to start with. They are kind of hard to miss, right? And I was taught about Dadaism at the Academy of Arts, but back then, I think it spoke to me more because of its anti-establishment ideas than because of its visual qualities. Diving into it deeper later on, seeing stuff from Hannah Höch especially, I had to revise my view. Then finding collagists like John Stezaker and the collage work of Ellsworth Kelly, collage won me over for good. Especially with Kelly, the connection between the elements in his collages is on a different, more aesthetic level, which I just love.
What appealed to me about collage from the start is that you can have the most mundane everyday image, but when put together with something else that either adds to it or conflicts with it, the effect can be almost otherworldly. That to me just never gets old.
Now and then, I cheat a little in that I scan in the more precious pictures first and fiddle around with them on a screen before cutting them up into what I want. I’ve ruined so many beautiful pictures by just attacking them willy-nilly; it had to stop! Then I try to figure out what the main visual angle or message is that I want to bring across with the pictures I chose, and then build it from there. I have a box of leftovers of all sorts at hand, so I can easily adjust or improvise. There will be music playing. It helps me to feel confident in what I’m trying to do. And tea. Lots of tea.
Found imagery & cardstock on sketchbook paper
12.3 x 13.3 cm
Found imagery, cardstock & ephemera on paper
12.3 x 13.3 cm
Not much is sacred, I’m afraid, especially since I’m taking things out of context anyway, as you say. There are certain things I wouldn’t do, but in all honesty, it’s mostly a visual thing. So the emphasis is much more on where the imagery can take me visually. Generally speaking, I turn to surrealism or absurdism a lot, but it’s not like a rule. I try to stay a little naive in a way as well and just create things of beauty, however distorted at times.
Found imagery, ephemera & pencil on antique picturebook paper
26.7 x 19.4 cm
Found imagery & pencil on cardstock
18 x 18 cm
About the Artist
La Société Anonyme is the moniker of an Eindhoven-based artist whose practice spans graphic design, music, and analog collage. Born and raised in the Netherlands, he has been making collages for over two decades, sometimes integrated into design work, sometimes purely for the pleasure of cutting and assembling.
The name “La Société Anonyme” emerged as a conceptual framework a few years ago, inspired by the recurring presence of anonymized figures in their work. These characters, masked, obscured, or otherwise untraceable, seemed to belong to a secret society operating in some alternate dimension. The pseudonym offered both a unifying theme and the freedom to explore a wide range of subjects: masculine and feminine, shadowy and serene.
Originally, the intention was to keep the artist's identity concealed, allowing the work to speak entirely for itself. But as interest has grown, through exhibitions, sales, and interviews, that veil of anonymity has begun to lift. This interview, then, marks a kind of playful unmasking: a quiet 'coming out' from behind the collage.
For Your Viewing Pleasure
What to watch, read, and experience, as curated by the Collé team.
LAURA BARTH is a multidisciplinary artist based in North Carolina. Primary media include analog and experimental photographic processes, graphite, charcoal, watercolor, and hand-carved prints. Laura currently exhibits her work at Calendula Gallery in St. Paul, MN, and has had work published and exhibited across the country.
YASHUA KLOS (b. 1977) is an American visual artist and educator. He is known for his large-scale collage and woodcut works, which address issues of identity, race, memory, and community.
STEPHANIE MOSHAMMER (b. 1988, Vienna) is a visual artist whose practice operates at the intersection of research, observation, and recreation. She works across mediums such as photography, moving images, text, installations, and book publishing.
KYLE ANDERSON is a Portland-based designer and collage artist whose work blends graphic design, screen printing, and mixed-media collage. Through his studio practice, he creates layered compositions that explore texture, typography, and vintage ephemera.
GISOO KIM is a contemporary artist born in Seoul, South Korea, in 1971. She is known for her photo collages, which she creates by manually assembling photographs without the use of computers or glue, effectively stitching together different places and perspectives.
Out and About
What to watch, read, and experience, as curated by the Collé team.
▼ READ
And Then There Was the Night published by OUTER SPACE PRESS
Wysocka and Pogo found a strange set of zines on eBay, featuring rephotographed stills from a 1920s pornographic film. This discovery led them to the mythic figure known as the “Vampire from Dachauer Moor.” Their photobook weaves archival fragments into a haunting study of identity and storytelling.
▼ READ
Notes from the Woodshed by Jack Whitten
Known for his experimental approach to painting, Jack Whitten also wrote extensively to probe and reflect on his practice. Notes from the Woodshed, the first collection of his writings, draws its title from a phrase he often used to frame his private investigations.
▼ LISTEN
This album is a gently surreal blend of krautrock and psych-pop. Vanishing Twin creates a sound that feels retro and futuristic at the same time. It’s cryptic but inviting, music that rewards deep listening without ever demanding it.
