acetate and ink birds

This past week I had eight lovely children participate in the Birds of a Feather art camp.

We started the week creating these very pretty acetate and ink paintings.

9 year old

Each child first did a drawing with a black sharpie marker.

7 year old

Then using acrylic inks, began to add layers of color, sometimes mixed with water.

6 year old

I love this project because it allows the kids to wipe the paper clean if they do not like how things are going and start all over again. Because the marker is permanent, their original lines stay in place so they can color as many times as they like.

5 year old

As they add the ink, the black lines begin to disappear, but no problem! Because when they are finished and dry, you flip the acetate over and view them kind of like a stain glass window.

6 year old

7 year old

These two last works are quite interesting in that their first drawings changed a lot after they began to add the ink. In fact, the bird on the branch is something that came out of the ink moving on the acetate. If you look in the lower left corner, you will see one of the original birds. I love how these two artworks came out.

This bird was never actually flying, but how pretty it turned out when he allowed the process and his imagination to lead him down a different path.

8 year old

When the kids are finished, I simply use a spray adhesive on the backside and mount them on a piece of Bristol board. Afterwards using the same permanent marker, they add their names and any additional line work they would like.

Aren't they gorgeous?