3D Process Art

No rules. No right or wrong. No restrictions. Just some fun 3D process art in its purest form!

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What you need:

- something to paint on- we used left over styrofoam packaging, all different shapes and sizes
- acrylic paints- we used IKEA MALA fluorescent paints, paints in squirty bottles work well
- selection of novel 'paint brushes'- we used cleaning tools
- Tip: contain the mess with a Bumkins Splat Mat and Art Smocks for your kids

So often creative activities have a certain level of expectation. You hope that at the end of the project your child will have produced a certain piece of work. That's often the case here too, but I love to throw in opportunities for my kids to 100% be creative. No telling them how to do it, just letting them use the materials however they wish. This was one of their favorite process art activities to date simply because it was using a novel canvas- 3D styrofoam shapes!

Armed with squirty paint bottles and various cleaning tools, both kids set about getting creative in their own unique ways. Big bro, who is 5, was all about squirting the paints to make different patterns. He loved experimenting with squirting the paints from different heights.

Once he'd added paint to the shapes, he started to explore the different 'brushes'.

Baby sis, who is 18 months, has always been excited to get her hands on the paint bottles so she loved this activity. I helped her to squirt paint onto the shapes, reminding her of the color names each time.

She also enjoyed the novelty of using unique tools to brush the paint with. Her favorite was the large sweeper.

This kept the kids' engagement for much longer than our normal painting sessions. It was so refreshing as a parent to also not be constantly reminding them of what they shouldn't be doing!

They did a great job of brightening up the 3D shapes! We are looking forward to them drying and using them to make ramps for cars and trucks!

Best of all, our Bumkins Splat Mat meant I wasn't left scrubbing floors for the next half hour. The mat and smocks all went in the washing machine and are all set for our next creative adventure!

What's your favorite method of process art?