Painting with acrylics

We have painted with acrylics for 2 classes now - what fun!  We used real from-tube acrylics, and some pretty nice brushes. I showed the Sm'Arties how to be respectful and kind to brushes, keeping them wet (after the first week I modified that directive - keep them damp, not dripping wet - this isn't watercolor), putting plenty of paint on the brush, and how to load more than one color on the brush. 


Week 1:  Just to get used to the paint, I asked the Sm'arties to paint the whole background, let it dry, then do some simple shapes and swoops on top.  We used Acrylic Paper and student-grade acrylic paint and brushes. 

Week 2:  We painted on canvases!  These were to be our Georgia O'Keefe-inspired paintings, though it is hard for the Sm'Arties to remember to zoom in CLOSE on whatever subject they portray.  Nevertheless, we are pretty impressed with ourselves.

See the little speckled egg in the pinecone?  It's a lizard egg - at least, that is what Science Geek told me.

A few painting with acrylics links:
http://www.ehow.com/how_5811214_teach-acrylic-painting-children.html

http://www.ehow.com/how_7676982_paint-using-acrylic-paint-children.html

http://acrylic-painting.blogspot.com/2004/06/buying-acrylic-paints.html

This artist mom paints with her young daughters: http://debrha.wordpress.com/

Pencil in a new schoolyear

I have so many plans and inspirations for this Sm'Artie year - many more than we can do!

 

Who wouldn't be excited to see these Sm'arties ready for art? 

I want to enjoy making and exchanging Artist's Trading Cards (ATCs).  I want us to paint on rocks.  I want us to learn to draw a little better.  I want to introduce the Sm'Arties to real oil paint from little tubes that stays wet for days.  I want us to carve rubber stamps.  And I want us to learn about art, artists, styles, movements. 

I'm editing pictures so we can have a fresh blog header, and having fun with Picnik.com.  I just love our last year's picture, but it's a new year!  By the end of the week, I want a 2010-2011 picture smiling from the header.

Kathy at Art Projects for Kids starts her students with fresh pencils, and I thought we would, too!  I bought a box of Ticonderoga pencils, gathered my Sharpies from their migratory summer homes, and let the Sm'Arties have at it. Did I tell you that I just love Sharpies?  So do the Sm'Arties.

I offered little strips of yellow cardstock if they wanted to work out a design.  (I don't like that cardstock anyway - I was glad to chop it into strips)  There were tiger stripes, polka dots, some kind of marbly-looking design, just plain stripes - lots of fun; no wrong answers.

 Once pencils were all decorated, they drew a still life - a little stone bird in a tall skinny cage - just a little something decorative Peg has sitting in the corner of her dining room. 

It's kind of hard to take a picture of a group drawing a still life, and include the still life in the photo.  What you get is mostly the space between:

 

 During Science Geeks class, the group was divided into teams - girls vs. boys.  Since our group is more heavily weighted toward masculine, JD was on the girls' team.  He returned to character several times in the course of the afternoon.  He is quite the ham.

It's great to be back!

An artsy giveaway

A new website to me,  Katydid and Kid, is having a cool art products giveaway from a Stubby Pencil Studio, a company that is also new to me.  Come join me and maybe one of us will win!  I'd love to put these goodies in my Sm'Arties bag.