That Bald Chick

Things got a bit hectic around here, so it was a bit later before we could start painting the second stretched canvas (you can read my post about the first canvas here).  While we did smaller, less time consuming (and less messy) art projects, in the interim, the kids did NOT let me forget that we had another canvas to paint.  Every day I heard, “Mommy, can we paint the canvas today?”   At one point, Mister shrugged his shoulders and said, “I guess we just aren’t never going to paint it.  Then we can’t never put them on the wall for everyone to see.”

I hated to make them wait, but things were crazy, and well…

Nevertheless, the second canvas painting day arrived, and Mister and Sister were thrilled.  They helped me spread the paper on the table (they even washed the table first).  Once the table was covered, I gave each their paint palette with acrylic paints and set them loose.

Sister was far more adventurous this time around.  Not only did she paint in several spots, she even painted on the painters tape to make it “disappear.”  Oops.  Hope it holds with as much paint as she slathered on there.  I think she is definitely more comfortable with painting now.

Mister, once again, was all elbows in.  He experimented with different sized brushes, to see what effect the size of the brush had on the appearance of the paint.  He also experimented by holding the paintbrush up and watching the paint drip onto the canvas from it.  I showed him how the paint splattered differently if you held it a little higher.  He thought that was cool, and soon enough, I was having to tell him to hold his brush closer to the canvas.  LOL.  He had no problem moving his paint palette around the table when he felt he was finished with one spot and wanted to start another.  It was comical to watch him, because he kept analyzing (he is his father’s son) whether or not a spot needed more paint.  If there was any black showing at all, he determined it had to be painted.

At one point, he reached up and used his brush to drag a line down the center of the canvas.  That pretty much rankled Sister’s countenance, since part of what he dragged was what she had just painted.  He told her that it was making it “consistent.”  Um, okay.  Whatever the case, she must have agreed, because she went back to painting and left it as it were.

Once they were finished, I set the canvas out on the washer to dry.  Now that I have artwork nearly ready to hang, I need a large clock for my wall.

I told you, yesterday, about our decision to let Mister and Sister paint canvases for our living room, because I couldn’t find affordable artwork (see that post here).  Once the paint dried on the canvases, and the painters tape was applied to create a design that we liked, we set them aside until Art Project Day.

I try to do an art project with the kids once a week.  Some weeks there are more, and some weeks it just doesn’t happen, but I do try.  Anyway, when Art Project Day came around, it was time to set the kids loose on one canvas.

I chose to do one stretched canvas at a time because A) my kids are two and four, B) I had a headache, C) my kids are two and four, D) the wet canvas has to be stored on top of our washer until it dries, and E) my kids are two and four.

Did I mention that my kids are two and four.

At least, until next month.  Anyway.

Once they got over the fact that I was only going to allow them to paint one canvas, they set to work on it…

I gave them each a paint palette and added the acrylic paints they picked.

It was interesting to watch them paint together.  They were both very intentional about what they were doing, and yet, so different in their approach.  Mister would apply a dab of paint in one spot, then a stroke of paint in another.  Sister would look at his, give her approval, and add another broad stroke where she was at.   I had to turn the canvas periodically, because while Mister would paint wherever, Sister kept painting the same spot… over… and… over… and… over.   So, I just gave her a new spot.  LOL.

At first, I thought she was painting in one spot because that was all she could reach.  I told her she could move her chair, or go to the other side of the table, but she didn’t want to.  When I asked her why she kept painting the same spot, she said, “eecuz I making it purrrfect.”  I noticed she didn’t like it when the paint got on her skin.   Mister didn’t care, and was all elbows in, if YKWIM.

They both enjoyed combining colors, and painting over one color with another.  Mister liked dragging his brush through several colors to see what happened.  After about thirty minutes (and three paint refills), though, they both announced that they were done painting.  So, it was off to the tub for them, and off to the laundry room for the canvas, so we could wait for the paint to dry.

I was eager for the paint to dry, so we could start the second canvas on our next Art Project Day.