Found poetry created by taking words and phrases from printed sources and arranging them into a poem. Although there are found poets that create this type of work as a literary exercise, most visual artists do it to create a work that is both meaningful and visually pleasing. Think of this type of found poetry as a sort of visual artwork, using words the creator has found.
There are different types of found poetry:
Blackout poetry is created when an artist takes a page from a book or magazine, and blacks out all but the words used in their poem. A variation of this idea is erasure poetry, where words are erased from the page, leaving only those in the poem behind.
Cut up or remixed poetry is created when an artist cuts out words and phrases, and arranges them on a page to create a poem.
I created a Pinterest board of found poetry examples, so you can see the many ways visual artists approach the idea.
I made the found poetry postcards on this page, for a swap here at Mixed Media Club. Here’s a quick video, showing some different ways to create you own: