start with lots of cardboard…one large piece to serve as the base/canvas and many many smaller scraps cut/ripped down. I cut a lot of strips with a paper cutter and also cut several piles of squares, circles and triangles. I also gathered some various thin wood odds and bits to incorporate. and some empty ribbon spools.
add a big container of homemade paste…we mixed some elmer’s into ours to give it a bit of extra hold.
we looked at some of louise nevelson’s work prior to this project, but I didn’t give the kids any instructions beyond letting them know they had to put paste down EACH time they added something new to the piece…my 3yo had trouble remembering this step…but in the end, the paste was a sculptural element in its own right!
once your kids are happy with their piece and/or tire of art making, set the art works somewhere safe to dry for several days.it took nearly a week for ours to dry, but the paste was also inches-thick in areas!
now it’s time to shop for spray paint! my kids only got to “shop” through my selection of colors in my studio, but a trip to the hardware store to choose from the many colors out there would be fun!
give the pieces a good coat or two of spray paint and then allow to dry thoroughly. we loved ours so much, we framed them to hang in our living room!
cheers.
AmberParis 