Faux Mexican 'bark' paintings!

My DragonWing Arts students this winter were working on globally inspired projects.  They learned about the Mexican bark paintings called 'papel amate'.  I showed them an authentic example, some samples I had made, and lots of photos of authentic work from Mexico. 

 To create the faux 'bark', students used brown Kraft paper, either from a paper bag or from a roll.  The edges were torn to make it look more irregular, and then the paper was crumbled up, dipped into a bucket of water, and squeezed out.

 Once the extra water was squeezed out, the students painted a wash of ink that had been thinned with water.  This brings out all the creases and wrinkles in the paper, and creates a nice look. 

 Then, when the 'bark' was dry, I flattened the papers with an iron and the kids drew on them with chalk.  They were told to draw lightly, so that it would be easy to rub out mistakes, but they actually were rather heavy-handed with the chalk.  We chose animals as our subject matter.

When the chalk drawings were complete, students painted with fluorescent tempera paints, and white.  I suggested decorative borders, as is often seen in the authentic papel amate, but only one student wanted to include a border.  Students used black ink to outline, using Q-tips instead of paintbrushes.  The black makes the colors pop.

I had just three students this winter, and since they are there mostly for a fun hands-on experience, I have had to adjust my expectations.  I always encourage and suggest, but ultimately let them make choices even if they aren't what I expected.

 The work above is by a fourth grade boy, and the piece at the top of the post is by a fourth grade girl who adores hummingbirds.  She is always very clear about what she wants to do, and follows through very carefully, while he tends to rush and is 'done' before I think he is.

My sweet 2nd grade boy decided he wanted to draw/paint a beaver, and after looking at lots of photos of beavers, the painting below is his work.  He was thrilled with the outcome and so am I, while I'm not so sure you would know that it is a beaver if I hadn't told you!

Below are samples that I have made, that I shared with the kids to give them a feel for the expected outcome.  The 4th grade boy really liked my lizards, which obviously inspired his.  I couldn't convince him to try something else, and I decided not to force the issue.

I painted the example below while the kids worked on their paintings.

Before I sign off, let me mention - for those of you who might be going to the NAEA convention in New Orleans next week, I invite you to come to my workshop titled "Design Your Art Program to Say YES to the Mess", at 8:00am on Friday!  It is filled with practical tips to make messy art easier to manage in a busy art program.

In addition, I am one of the presenters  in the Elementary Carousel on Blogging, also on Friday morning, at 11:00am.  My mini-presentation will focus on getting the most out of reading blogs. 

And finally, at 1:00pm on Friday, I will be at the AOE (Art of Education) booth in the vendor area, for a gathering of bloggers.  If you want to meet some of your favorite bloggers, stop and visit!  I look forward to meeting some of my readers!