Wind paintings and poetry by grades one and two

First and second graders used their breath to paint these beautiful paintings, using straws and liquid watercolor paint.  We started with the primary colors so that we could observe color mixing. Then we experimented with other combinations. They remind me of fireworks, which fits nicely with our Chinese New Year theme. 

After creating two wind paintings apiece, artists wrote poems or observations about their artwork. I posted these alongside the paintings. This was a fun way to bring a bit of the Common Core into the art room and get students talking about their artwork. Their paintings brought to mind so many great images, including gnarled witches fingers, fiery asteroids, moose antlers and rivers. 

 

Cherry blossoms paintings for Chinese New Year

Painting without paintbrushes?!?  First and second grade artists used their breath through straws to create the tree brunches and fingerprints to create the cherry blossoms in these beautiful paintings based on Chinese scrolls. They used liquid watercolor paint for the branches and printed pink and red flowers with tempera using their fingers and cotton swabs.

Wind Paintings

On a particularly windy day, Pre-K artists made wind painting using liquid watercolors and their own breath.  We used short straws to help them move the paint with their breath.  Some artists also experimented with turning and tipping the paper.