Art by Liam

"All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up." Pablo Picasso

My little guy loves to create. It's become a daily thing now to grab his box of art supplies (for now it contains crayons, washable markers, stickers, and the coolest gel sticks) and color at the art table. Of course I am thrilled about this having studied art throughout middle and high school (and regrettably only one class in college). It's always been something I enjoyed and sometimes feels therapeutic. 

Recently a friend asked if I would do an art project with her kiddos, and I had a fun time putting it all together and teaching my first art "class" (there were 4 students, so that counts, right?). To add meaning to our project, we read "A Color of His Own" which tells a story of a chameleon who tries so very hard to remain just one color so he could have his own just like the other animals. He eventually learns, with the help of a friend, to be as he was created. Not a Christian book, but at the end I add that God made us unique (Psalm 139) and for a purpose. We should live as He made us and not try to be something we are not. 

Then we made our own chameleons with poster board and water colors. 

To start out, trace your chameleon onto the poster board, but do not cut out until the very end.

After tracing, take a medium-sized paint brush, fill with only water, and spread the water all over the chameleon. Then take a color from you water color tray and dab onto the watered surface. By doing the water first, this allows all of your colors to blend well together and have a tie-dyed effect like this:

Even my 22 month old was able to water color his chameleon - so easy! After drying, cut the chameleon out then draw his facial features with a sharpie. 

I am looking forward to our next art project and fostering my little guy's creativity!

Pastels, oil pastels, acrylics, charcoal, colored pencils...there are so many ways to create!