INFANT ART PROJECT #3 - Swirls & Goop

 

Z and I had great fun experimenting with another infant art project. This idea we borrowed from a book I discovered listed on several mama blogs, 'First Art' by MaryAnn Kohl. She calls this project 'Feelie Goop'. It's soooo simple, and so much fun. You begin by pouring 2 cups of cornstarch into a baking or deep dish. 

Zosia really enjoyed feeling the texture of the powdered starch.

 

That alone probably would have sustained her attention for 20 minutes or so.  But the excitement was just beginning...

I added 1 cup of water to the cornstarch to make it officially goop. I let Z play a few minutes with the goop before... we added COLOR. 

Using food coloring I dropped in some BLUE...

...and she Swirled color...

I added RED...

And then.. GREEN.... and... YELLOW...

My little Picasso was hard at work. 

She enjoyed every second of it, as did I!

We stopped when our goop went to... poop. 

...and then Off to the bath. 

Chalk Art - INFANT ART PROJECT 2

 

Such a challenge to find good art projects for the wee little ones. We just happened to have had crayola chalk in the house + watercolor paper. So viola, art project #2.

 

 

Zosia enjoyed herself for about 15min. It didn't seem to hold her attention as much as the paint project. I did keep it out for her, and she returned a few times to explore again.

I loved watching her draw lines of color. It's so fun to share these moments with her. Really everything is exciting to a child. They are so new... everything is fresh! It's a great reminder to see the world from this prospective. 

Ever-new I rest in this moment with no judgements, just total acceptance.

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Finger Paint.. er...Body Paint... er... Mess = INFANT ART PROJECT 1

Zosia had her first experience with COLOR and ART! I honestly couldn't wait to share a moment of creativity with her. It's a challenge to come up with infant art projects that are safe and interesting for little ones. Finger-painting with colored flour and water was our first experiment.

It's pretty simple... all you need to do is:

• get paper/posterboard as a 'canvas' 
• mix equal parts flour and water in a medium bowl
• divide flour mix into three separate containers ( I used baking ramekins)
• add food-coloring or fruit/veggie dyes to the mix ( I used red, yellow, blue)
• setup a large 'mess' blanket or work in an area where it's okay to get messy
• have a towel ready for immediate delivery to bath after project

 

 At first I was trying to teach her to dip one finger in at a time to color on the canvas. It surprised me how 'neat' I was trying to be. After a few minutes of teaching her, I surrendered to  her own exploration of the experience. Immediately she went to paint herself. It instantly brought me back to memories of painting myself for hours as a kid. I used to love making intricate details on my body with paint. It is so cool to have those moments of personal reflection while parenting your own child. 

 

By the end Zosia was covered in paint! She really enjoyed spreading the paint all over the place. Flipping over the ramekins was a big event for her and me. I had to totally surrender to the mess and she rolled with joy in and out of the puddles. 

It is a great sensorial experience for her... feeling the texture of the paint, watching the affect she has on the canvas, seeing the difference between the three colors. She really enjoyed herself, and after about 45 minutes, she was finished. It was tricky getting her from the porch to the bath without getting paint everywhere.

All in all it was great fun! I learned to surrender my will for the sake of the moment and reconnected to past memories of pure concentrated joy!

Zosia's First Work of Art