Cork · Ireland · Est. 2026
About the
Collective
The Cork Collage Collective is a community arts organisation founded in Cork, Ireland in May 2026. We exist to bring collage artists and enthusiasts together, to share material and knowledge, and to keep the practice of cutting and pasting alive and accessible to anyone who wants in.
"Collage is one of the most democratic art forms there is. It asks nothing of you except curiosity."
Monthly Photo
Every month we release a free archival photograph for anyone to download and use in their collages. No sign-up, no cost, no conditions.
Community Archive
Collages made with the monthly photo, and beyond, are submitted by the community and published to a public archive on this website.
Annual Zine
Each year the best work from the archive is selected and published in a printed zine. Supporting members get a copy. The rest go into the world.
Gatherings
Regular meetups, workshops, and material swaps in Cork and online. We gather on International Collage Day every May for our annual review.
Coordinators
The Founders
Co-founder and Coordinator
Don Samec
aka Poetonic · donsamec.com
Don Samec is a California-born French mixed-media collage artist, photographer, and creative producer based in Cork, Ireland. Working under the name Poetonic, his practice explores fragmentation, material memory, and the shifting textures of contemporary culture, building layered visual narratives from reclaimed media, archival imagery, discarded posters, and found objects. His work has been exhibited internationally across solo and group exhibitions in New York, Washington D.C., Belgium, and throughout Ireland and France.
Co-founder and Coordinator
Silvio Severino
aka In Glue We Trust · @loop_conspiracy
Silvio Severino is a Brazilian-born collage and motion artist based in Cork, working between analog and digital. His practice moves across photography, cut-out collage, and animation, with a raw, punk-driven approach drawing from DIY culture, music, and underground aesthetics. At the core of his work is an exploration of queerness, sexuality, and identity, approached through symbolism, rupture, and recombination. He runs collage workshops including at the Rebellion Punk Music Festival in the UK, and is a member of Collagistas and the Backwater Artists Network in Cork.
How we work
Flat, open, and community-led
The Cork Collage Collective is an unincorporated association with a flat structure. Three Coordinators handle the legal and administrative responsibilities of the organisation. They hold signing rights for the bank account and represent the Collective in formal matters. Beyond that, they have no authority over the creative or community decisions of members.
Membership is free and open to anyone. No application, no approval, no hierarchy. If you attend a gathering, submit work, or sign up to the newsletter, you are a member.
Decisions that affect the whole Collective are made by open discussion at gatherings, with consensus or a simple majority. The constitution can be amended by a two-thirds majority at any gathering, with two weeks notice.
Finance
Full transparency
The Collective holds funds in a dedicated bank account. All money raised, whether through supporting memberships, zine sales, merchandise, grants, or donations, goes directly back into the Collective's activities. No profits are distributed to members or coordinators.
Accounts are reviewed at the annual gathering. Any member or member of the public can request a copy of our income and expenditure record at any time by emailing us. We will send it.
Request our accountsLegal document
Our Constitution
The CCC is governed by a simple constitution adopted on 9 May 2026. It covers our aims, membership, structure, finances, the monthly photo, the community archive, the annual zine, and how we can be dissolved. It is a public document.
Download Constitution (PDF)Key articles
Open, free membership for anyone
Flat structure, three Coordinators
Monthly free photo for community use
Public community archive on the website
Annual printed zine from community work
Full financial transparency on request
Dissolution funds go to Cork arts organisations
Get involved
Come to a gathering. Submit your work. Download the monthly photo. There is no barrier to entry and no commitment required.