(original artwork by David, grade 5)
Art Club, Grades 1-6
This is one of my all-time favorite projects. The technique has been around for years, and I've loved using it several times with my students. This time around, our art is of owls and leaves.
We first planned our compositions, paying attention to all of the positive and negative spaces. We wanted to be sure they were all interesting. Here are some step-by-step instructions. Let me know if you need help!
1.
Draw your picture on paper the size of your final cardboard. Just the big shapes, no details.
**I've noticed on Pinterest some people think we used coloring book images. Not so- we used our own drawings for these. We had owl photos and real leaves to look at, and I reminded the artists to keep it simple, fill the page, and no details. You could use coloring books, but the kid's drawings are so wonderful, I would hate to miss out on them!!
2.
Go over your simple drawing with Sharpie.
3.
Turn your drawing over. On the back, use your pencil on it's side to go over your lines.
4.
Place your drawing right side up on cardboard and trace over your lines for a graphite transfer to the cardboard.
(Or, if you want to speed this up, just draw directly on the cardboard. I like to teach the transfer skill, something they can use on future projects.)
5.
Go over with Sharpie if needed to see lines clearly.
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6. Use a thick, tacky glue to go over the lines and let dry.
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| (This image has the glue lines on it- they have dried clear.) |
7.
Use a glue stick to attach the foil.
(Shiny or dull side showing-you decide.)
8.
Wrap the foil over the front and to the back.
9.
Press foil down around dry glue lines. Use a paper towel over your fingers as you rub to avoid tearing the foil.
10.
Then use a cotton swab up against the glue outlines once the foil is pressed down, just to be sure the glue outlines show up really well.
11.
Draw patterns in all of the spaces with a dull pencil.
(Use a variety of types of line and scales of patterns.)
Once you've filled all of the spaces, rub over the whole thing with black shoe polish, wait a few seconds, and wipe off. (
I use the kind that comes in a bottle with a sponge applicator lid.)
A couple of you have commented on the color- the results will be an aged silver metal look, something along the color lines of pewter. The golden effect in my photos is the result of reflected color from the walls and low light since I didn't use a flash.
Yes. Lots of steps. A bit teacher intensive- I put the glue on at home. Times 150, that takes a bit of time! But the results are so wonderful!
I've used this in conjunction with illuminated manuscript in the past- so kids did a single letter with borders and lots of decorative patterns. And I think these would be perfect for Day of the Dead skulls...maybe some year I'll do that!
When I was hanging these up, parents, teachers, and kids all stopped to ask about them- I love being able to tell my Art Club artists how much people enjoy their art work! The most common word I heard was "WOW!!"
Make it a wonderful day!
