This year, our preschoolers have been very aware of the natural rhythm of the seasons. In the fall, we did an in depth study on hibernation and the winter brought us to Antarctica, where we learned lots about penguins and snow. In late January, we noticed a patch of green on our playground that turned out to be daffodils. We carefully inspected them every day as they grew taller and taller and observed buds developing. On a sunny day in March, we were finally greeted by bright yellow flowers! We brought flowers into our classroom to look at, touch and smell. We looked at pictures of flowers, sang songs about them and read stories about them too. When it came time to begin our work for the art show, we were ready to create a collection of spring flowers!

The Process
We began our process by looking at paintings of flowers by Pablo Picasso, Georgia O’Keeffe, Simon Silva, Vincent van Gogh and Joan Mitchell. We talked about colors, shapes and how different each painting was. Some paintings looked like real flowers, while others made us think of flowers by the use of color and composition. Starting with primary colors, we rolled acrylic paints onto large sheets of paper. We then mixed our colors to create secondary colors. Next, we added white to our colors to lighten them up and create pastels. These would serve as the canvases for our final art show pieces.

Looking at shapes was the next step. Using ovals, rectangles, circles and triangles, we created a series of flower collages. We moved on to create garden collages with a collection of natural materials. Acorn caps, sticks, seeds and dried flower petals were the perfect shapes to make flowers.

Lastly, we took a tour of an art exhibition at Creative Arts Workshop and were able to view a cohesive art show, learn how a collection is curated and even meet one of the artists!The collection of flowers that you see here today demonstrates how thoroughly the children immersed themselves in their process and how they worked with thoughtfulness and intent to create these amazing pieces.

We hope you love them as much as we do!

Tissue Paper and Marker Prints
Using a permanent marker, the children created a flower drawing on watercolor paper. Some chose to create one flower, others chose to create a garden full of flowers. Once the drawing was complete, water was applied to the entire paper. Tissue paper squares were arranged on top of the drawing and then sprayed with water. When the tissue paper dried, it was removed leaving splashes of color on the paper.

Paper Collage
These collages were made entirely with the paper we created. The children chose a primary color canvas and, with scissors in hand, cut their own shapes into petals, leaves and stems. The composition of each collage is quite unique.

Still Life Paintings
A vase of flowers was placed in the center of the table and as we looked at it, we discussed the colors and shapes of what we saw. Using acrylics on a hard canvas board, the children created their own still life paintings.  

For our group piece, we worked with muslin cloth and real flowers. Each child chose flowers and leaf shapes and arranged them on a section of the cloth. We covered them with another piece of cloth and gently tapped them with a hammer. The natural pigment of the flowers and leaves was released onto the fabric - it was like magic!. Once enough of the pigment was transferred, we peeled off the actual flowers and leaves.

To prepare for the creation of our individual pieces, the children were given the opportunity to explore several different hands-on experiences.  The idea for our individual pieces was taken from an art form called Batik.  Batik is a wax-resist technique used to create designs on textiles.  There are different ways to create Batik, but one of the oldest techniques uses fabric, hot wax, dye, and hot water.  We wanted to recreate this technique in a child-friendly and safe way for the children.  Two different ways were decided upon for the individual pieces and the children were given the opportunity to try both.

The first technique involved the use of clear wax crayons, watercolor paper, and watercolor paint.  At meeting time, the children were shown the wax crayon and the watercolor paper.  The teachers then explained that the children were going to draw on the paper but would not be able to clearly see what they drew at first.  The teachers then went on to explain that once watercolor paint was added on top of the paper, their drawings would once again reappear.  In the weeks leading up to the art show, the Toddlers spent time learning and experimenting with primary colors and color mixing.  To echo this color exploration, the children chose two primary colors to paint with on their watercolor paper.  The children were excited to see what color their two primary colors created and were delighted as their wax drawings “magically” reappeared as the paint was applied.

Some pieces showcase two primary colors highlighted with a secondary color, while others consist mainly of the secondary color that was created.  In the end, this process created vibrantly colored pieces, each very unique. 

The second technique that was presented to the children for their individual pieces used different materials.  This process used paper, oil pastel crayons, acrylic paint, and a bin of water.  The children were first given a piece of paper and were asked to cover their entire paper with different color oil pastels.  Once the paper was covered with the pastels, the children were instructed to crumple up their paper into a ball.  At first, some of the children were hesitant to because they thought their artwork was going to be thrown out or ruined, but were quickly reassured that this was all part of the process and their artwork was safe.  The children then crumpled their papers into a ball several times to create many lines in their oil pastel covered papers. 

The papers were then opened back up and laid flat on the table and the children chose one color of acrylic paint to brush over their entire paper.  Again, they were concerned their artwork might be ruined, but again they were assured their artwork was safe and that the paint would quickly be washed away.  Once the paper was covered in the paint, the children brought their artwork to a wash bin to soak their paper and wash away the acrylic paint.  To their amazement, the paint washed away and only remained stuck to the lines created when they balled up their papers.  The paper was then hung to dry and the end result is truly unique.

At meeting time, the individual pieces were shown to the children and each child was given the opportunity to look closely at their artwork, talk about what they see, and give their masterpiece a title.  The children are all so proud of the work they created and have been looking forward to sharing them with their family and friends.

We wanted our group pieces to reflect a different style of child-friendly “Batik”, just as our individual pieces did.   To accomplish this, another technique for creating a Batik effect was introduced.
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The materials used to create these pieces were glue, fabric, acrylic paint, fabric medium, and wash bins for soaking.  For the first step of the process, the children were each given a piece of fabric and a squeeze bottle filled with colored glue.  The children were instructed to hold the glue bottle upside down over their fabric and squeeze and drizzle the glue in any way that they felt comfortable. Some children held their glue bottles high above the fabric, and others held them very close to the table.  Some children moved the bottles in very strategic ways, some dripped glue into tiny dots, and some wanted to make giant globs of the glue.  The glue was colored so the children could still see the glue, even after it dried. 

Once the children were happy with their glue designs, the fabric was laid flat to dry until the next class session.  For the next step, the children chose two different primary colors of acrylic paint.  Fabric medium was added to the acrylic paint to help make it easier to apply and adhere to the fabric.  The children were told to paint their entire piece of fabric, even over the glue.  When the fabric was completely covered in the paint we waited only a few minutes until we moved onto the final step of the process.  The final step was to soak the fabric in warm water and wash away the glue revealing their initial glue designs in resist form on the fabric.

After the fabric pieces were hung and dry, they were ironed and assembled into panels by the teachers.  Each piece of the panel is unique individually and when combined together, they create something truly beautiful to display.