"The technique of creating a pictorial composition in two dimensions or very low relief by gluing paper, fabrics, or any natural or manufactured material to a canvas or panel. An entire work may be executed in collage, but the technique is also used in combination with painting or other techniques. When heavy three-dimensional objects dominate the composition the work is usually called an assemblage, a term used also for freestanding construction more closely related to sculpture than painting....etc"

Webster's definition is:

collage: Pronunciation: k&-'läzh, ko-, kO-
Function: noun
Etymology: French, literally, gluing, from coller to glue, from colle glue, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin colla, from Greek kolla
1 : an artistic composition made of various materials (as paper, cloth, or wood) glued on a surface
2 : the art of making collages
3 : an assembly of diverse fragments
4 : a work (as a film) having disparate scenes in rapid succession without transitions
- collage transitive verb
- col•lag•ist /-'lä-zhist/ noun