Rothko Inspired Rainbows

 

Rothko rainbows 2

Today’s Story Time read aloud was “The Rainbow Goblins” by Ul de Rico. This is a stunningly illustrated book that tells the story of the Valley of the Rainbows and the greedy goblins who want to steal all the beautiful colors.

Rainbows are magical and even the scientific explanation for their origin is the stuff of wonder. Light streaming through water molecules at just the right angle to bend light? Amazing. White light that actually carries the spectrum of colors? Incredible. Nature and science really are magic and so is art.

You can watch the read aloud video and see how I created the mini rainbows above at Sea of Visibility on FB.

Rothko was an abstract artist who expressed emotions with color. he also tried to make viewers feel certain emotions only using color.

When I was playing with lipstick, eye shadow and nail polish to blend and combine colors, I was reminded of Mark Rothko’s abstract color paintings. Just trying out different color combinations and blending the different pigments together made me happy. I thought I knew what result I would get but was pleasantly surprised every time.

Here are two great sites to visit to learn more about the artist Mark Rothko and to make your own rainbow experiments.

Rainbow Science  and   Who is Mark Rothko?

Here are some more mini rainbows I made today. How do they make you feel?

Thanks so much for visiting.

Keep creating!

Patty

Making Paint with Fruit and Veggies!

supplies
Supplies for painting with veggies and fruit.
No paint at home? No problem! You can make dyes and paint at home using vegetable scraps and fruit. In one of my previous videos, Drawing with Glue, I showed you how to use condiments like turmeric, paprika and cinnamon as pigments, today we’ll be using food!
** Be sure to have help from a grownup because there is some boiling water involved**
In today’s video available at these links –  on FB and Instagram you’ll see how you can use carrot, beet, lemon and blackberry dyes to make a bubble painting, straw painting and a funky texture painting.
I have included the link to download a wonderful picture tutorial from http://meyamo.com/ that I followed to make these dyes.
I didn’t have any powdered sugar, so I left that out. This gave me a paint that is very close to watercolor and I was able to use the same techniques I use with watercolor paint.
Supplies
  •  Orange carrots, purple carrot, frozen beets, blackberries and lemon
  • Watercolor paper – you will need sturdy paper. If you don’t have card stock or watercolor paper, I suggest gluing a few pages of copy paper together or gluing copy paper to a piece of cardboard. This will prevent the paint from soaking into the paper completely.
  • Paintbrush – I also used a make up sponge!
  • Paper towel or napkin
  • Straw

Steps – 

Click on this link and follow the directions to make your dyes/paints – Meyamo_Handmade_Fruit and Vegetable_Paints

This is a great use for any older fruits and vegetable scraps you have. You can also use any jars or plastic containers you’ve been saving or have in the recycling pile to store your paint for future paintings.

 

 

The concentration of color depends on how much water is added to the fruit and vegetables. Although the color may be very light at first, it does dry darker and once your first layer of paint is dry you can add more to make your color more vibrant.
Make the straw painting by dropping puddles of paint on the paper with a brush or spoon and blowing the paint around, producing some really abstract designs.
Adding salt to the wet paint will give you an interesting texture. See how the texture changes by adding more or less. Once dry, brush or tap off the salt and see what your texture looks like.
If you don’t have any paintbrushes, you can also use a cotton ball or a make up sponge! This sponge gave me 3 sides to get interesting prints from.
As you can see, there are many ways to experiment with your natural dyes. What other kind of natural paint has been used throughout history?
Here are some links to more resources about that –
Tune in on FB and Instagram on  Saturday when I’ll be reading “The Rainbow Goblins” and sharing art techniques using simple tools.
Thanks for visiting and keep creating!
Patty

Shape Collage!

Supplies

Hello! today’s project is super simple but can be expanded and transformed into anything you like! Collage is an art technique that almost everyone has used at some point. It lends itself to so many possibilities and can be created with just about any materials you have on hand.

As always you can see the full video project at Art Out of Anything on Facebook  and Instagram. Brand new project videos on Tuesday and Thursday every week.

For today’s project I chose the following supplies

  • Paper – all kinds to tear up like magazines, construction paper, tissue paper, copy paper etc.
  • Glue stick
  • Pencil and/or marker
  • Scissor
  • Paper to draw my shape on and as the canvas for your collage

STEPS – 

  • Choose shape you would like to fill. I chose a heart but also drew a silhouette of a cat. You can also use coloring book pages or print out coloring pages or line drawings and use those as your  shape guide.
  • Tear the collage paper into small pieces to fit your shape. Optional – you can also cut your paper into pieces with scissors. Tearing is also a really good fine motor skill to practice.
  • Start gluing your pieces to the inside of your shape as if you were coloring. You can overlap pieces or place them next to each other. You can also leave space in between pieces. Try all different ways to fill in your shape.

Once completed, add one coat of glue to the entire surface of your collage to glue down any loose edges. Here is my completed heart shape collage which I glued onto a page from a magazine, cut around it, then glued onto another full magazine page to make a border. The red page was a perfume ad so the heart smells pretty too!

cropped finished heart collage

Of course you can also come up with your own theme for a collage! Here are some examples of collages my students made that describe their favorite place –

You can also make a collage using only shades of the same color, only faces and more. Challenge yourself to create a collage landscape using only pictures, like they did in the examples above of their favorite place. What picture do you think they used to represent the sand? Hint – it’s an advertisement for flooring.

Picasso and Braque were the first to use collage they way we recognize it,  in their work. Here’s a link to a fantastic article, with photos of amazing collage work by famous artists  My Modern Met – Collage Art

This is a digital shape collage maker that uses your own photos – Shape Collage download

It’s also an app for Android and IPhones.

Collage is an art form that I use in my personal work all the time. I even make collage jewelry with scraps of anything I have on hand  –

Dance collage jewelry

I hope you find wild and wonderful things to make collages of!

Please contact patty @eljaiekart@gmail.com for remote learning workshops and professional development bookings.

Thanks for visiting and keep creating,

Patty

 

Spiders, Bugs and Insects! Oh my!

Hello, hello!

Today’s Story Time Read Aloud is Miss Spider’s Wedding by David Kirk. You can see the video read aloud and video tutorial at Art Out of Anything on FB  and Instagram.

I love insects. I love reading about them, drawing them and creating mashed up illustrations of insects and other animals! David Kirk’s stunning paintings that illustrate Miss Spider’s Wedding, remind us how beautiful insects are and also how beautiful a little feeling called love is too.

When I decided to make insects for this project, I didn’t have any clay or dough and I thought maybe other people might not have any either. SO, I have made some simple insects using paper, tape, straws, shish kabob sticks, paint and glue. You can also use chopsticks and Q-Tips or pencils.

Below you will find links to sites that show you how to make your own dough at home, learn more about insects and some free downloadable templates for inspiration.

Steps – 

  • Wings – I am sure you have probably seen this classic symmetry activity. It’s the easiest and prettiest way to get pairs of wings for your insect.
  1. fold a piece of paper in half
  2. place paint, directly from bottle or tube, near the center crease of the paper.
  3. add as many colors as you like but make sure you are using small amounts of paint. You don’t want the paint to leak out!
  4. once you have all the paint colors you like, close the paper on the crease so it’s folded again
  5. begin spreading out the paint in between the two halves of the paper.

You can see the  paint faintly through the paper and can shape the wings by using your hands and spreading the paint. Open your paper and you have your wings!

Finished “butterfly wings” symmetry.

In my project, I used an 8.5″ x 11″ piece of copy paper and once dry, was able to cut out 3 pairs of wings.

I also made a “bee” using paper and tape. It’s easy to mold paper into shapes and hold together using tape. You can watch me complete that little bee on the video.

Science Connection –  Insects are some of the most interesting species on the planet. Here are some links to learn about the difference between insects, bugs and more – 

Bug or Insect?Facts About Bugs and InsectsParts of an Insect,  14 of the World’s Wildest Insects

FREE downloadable templates – BeetleSpiderLadybug  

Play dough and clay recipes – Recipe #1Recipe #2No cook Recipe #3

Here are some amazing insects that some of my students made using Model Magic, a template and cardboard.

 

Here’s one of my insect mash-ups – it’s an illustration I did for one of my favorite books,  Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury.

SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES
How many insects or bugs can you find in this picture?

Enjoy making your bugs and insects and I will be back with new art projects next week. Follow us on FB and Instagram for new videos!

Thanks for visiting and keep creating!

Patty

A Monoprint and an extra project!

supplies
Suggestions for supplies.

Hello everyone!

Today we have 2 projects to explore, one that can be used over and over again and one that is unique and one of a kind.

Finger painting is a great activity for kids of all ages and adults too. It provides a wonderful sensory experience and promotes fine motor skills while providing a relaxing, creative activity. It’s not as popular as other art projects unfortunately because it is most definitely super messy. But what if I told you, you could finger paint without turning your hands (and maybe your furniture) into a paint palette? ?

Well you can, with some simple supplies!

No Mess Finger Painting

Supplies –

  • Plastic baggie (preferably Ziploc although you can tape the top of the baggie to prevent any paint squeezing out).
  • Paint – acrylic, tempera, washable paint is best. If you have no paint, you can mix up some instant pudding or use one of the recipes listed in the links below to make your own “paint”.
  • Your hands!
  • Optional – Q-Tips, end of paintbrush handle or pencil

Steps – 

  • Pour paint into the plastic baggie. If the paint is too thick, mix it with a splash of water before you pour it into the baggie. Paint should not be too thin.
  • Carefully squeeze out all excess air before sealing bag. Add tape to the top to prevent any leaking.
  • Once your baggie is ready, you can use your fingers, Q -Tips, or the rounded end of the paintbrush handle or pencil eraser end to create designs.
clean fingerpainting baggie
This activity is great for learning about color mixing.

It’s fun to “paint” by removing, or “erasing”  pigment instead of adding pigment, by moving the paint around and creating designs. This activity is also a wonderful way to explore elements of art such as color (primary and secondary colors) and negative space (the space around and between the subject of an image).

It’s super relaxing and fun to watch the colors mix and spread. Plus you can “erase” designs by gently rubbing and moving the paint around. You get a new canvas to create!

Our second project today is a MONOPRINT, a form of printmaking where the design or drawing can only be made once.

supplies and finished work
Some supplies we used.

Supplies – 

  • Cookie sheet or aluminum tray. I used a pizza tray today in my video, but I usually use disposable aluminum trays in my workshops. As long as your paint is non-toxic and water soluble you can always clean the tray after using.
  • Paint or a homemade substitute (see link below)
  • Mark making materials like Q-Tips, combs, fingers, plastic utensils etc.
  • Paint spreader – you can use a brush, stiff cardboard, paint roller or a brayer (if you have one!)
  • Paper

Steps –

  • Spread paint evenly onto the tray with your paint spreader. The paint should be opaque and smooth, a nice thin layer is best.
  • Use your mark making tools to create a design. Try to work quickly since the paint may begin to dry and that would prevent getting a good print.
  • Your design will be reversed, so remember that if you are using words.
  • Once your design is ready, place the paper on top and gently burnish (rub) the surface of the paper to transfer the design from the tray to the paper.
  • Pull the print – as you’ve seen in our previous videos, gently lift off the paper, starting at the top from the tray.
finished monoprint
Our finished Monoprint. The image will be reversed, so be mindful if you are using words.
  • As you can see above, some of my paint had started to dry so I ended up with a slightly uneven print. Sort of looks like a woodcut! This can also be called a reverse print because the design is made by the lines where there is no paint.

Here are some links to learn more about the elements of art and ways to make your own paint.

Favorite Homemade Paint Recipes

Elements of Art for grades 6-12

Free printable Elements of Art book for grades PK – 5

Be sure to visit, like and follow us on FB   and Instagram  for weekly project videos and read aloud story time for all ages. Contact Patty at eljaiekart@gmail.com to learn more about our professional development workshops, now available via Zoom and/or Google Hangouts.

Thanks for visiting and keep creating!

Patty

 

 

 

 

Art is Messy – action painting with yarn

Happy Earth Day!

Today’s art project video can be viewed at Art Out of Anything on FB and @artoutofanything on Instagram.

 With this project we continue to offer art activities that you can do at home or in the classroom with much of what you already have on hand so you can work with what you have!
Action painting is exactly what it sounds like, painting with movement. 
Jackson Pollock was a painter know for his action paintings. You can see him painting and hear him talking about his artistic process in this video – SFMOMA – Paintings have a life of their own.
You can also visit his house on the east end of Long Island in NY or virtually at  Pollock-Krasner House. His wife, Lee Krasner was also an amazing artist.
Pollock’s paintings are not only colorful and lively, they also contain fractals, which is another example of how math can be found everywhere in art.
Today we will make our own action painting using yarn and paint.
Project Steps –  the steps for this project work best being viewed but I will give you the abridged version here.
  • gather your materials – I used acrylic paint, pieces of yarn and embroidery thread, clothespins, cups, paper and paint.
  • cover you work space with an old sheet or tablecloth or even a garbage bag.
  • pour paint into cups, add a splash of water if paint is too thick
  • clothespins are used to pick up yarn pieces and dip them into the paint cups. Make sure to coat the yarn as much as possible with the paint.
  • once your yarn is ready, lift it out of the cup with the clothespin and drop it onto the paper that is your canvas. You can also drag the yarn on the paper or shake it so it create splatters.
  • I would suggest leaving the yarn on the paper until you have completed your piece so that the paint has time to soak into the paper. This also creates a more cohesive finished piece.
  • once you feel your piece is done, remove the yarn using the clothespins or your fingers. You can even use chopsticks or tweezers!

You can lay your finished masterpiece flat to dry or hang it. If you have runny paint on your piece, your painting will change as the paint drips while it is hanging. Just be sure to place some newspaper or another garbage bag under the hanging painting to catch the drips.

I mentioned the word fractals earlier. A fractal is a never ending pattern. They can be found in math equations and in the world all around us from tree branches to snowflakes. Scientists who have analyzed Pollock’s seemingly random placement of paint, have discovered these never ending patterns in his work. Can you think of how that would happen when he was dripping and dropping paint and lots of other objects into his paintings without any obvious intentional placement? I have my own theory but you have to watch the project video for that!

Here are some links to really interesting articles about their theories and what they found –

Discover Magazine

A Scholarly Blog

Here are some interactive sites where you can see how fractals work and create your own –

Experimenting with FractalsMath Fairy, Kids  , Interactive Fractal Machine

Here are some links to online drawing tools to create your own, not so messy action painting –

Scratch MITNick jr. Drawing

I hope you enjoy getting messy and exploring the wonderful world of fractals and art.

Follow us on FB and Instagram @artoutofanything for weekly videos and activities. You can also contact us at eljaiekart@gmail.com or direct message us at FB and Instagram if you are interested in remote professional development workshops or homeschooling workshops.

Thanks for visiting and keep creating!

Patty