Art Workshop for Children Book Review

What a privilege it is to share Barbara Rucci’s gorgeous book, Art Workshop for Children (affiliate), with you today. It’s hot off the press and making itself quite comfortable in our home. I handed it to my 8-year old who wanted to try just about every activity in this book (anyone who says process art is just for preschool children should be ignored!).

For this first stop on Bar’s book tour, we wanted to share something simple that anyone could do at home (simple materials all the way — that’s my motto!), we chose the well-named “Simple Frame Paintings.” I hope this gives you a taste of what’s inside the pages of Barbara’s book, and maybe even inspires you to try it today.

What’s inside the book:

• 25 process art experiences
• beautifully written essays on children and art by Reggio-inspired educator Betsy McKenna
• colorful photos that you’ve come to love from Bar’s popular blog, ArtBar Blog.
• Tips for art making
• Variations to try next time
• Examples of what real children have said when they tried the activities
• Also, the book is flexibound, which makes for an easy page-turning experience. Seems like a minor thing, but it makes a big difference.

If you go to Amazon, you can see the full table of contents and get a deep look inside the book.

And here’s a little peek inside…

It’s beautiful, right? Okay, on to Workshop 1: Simple Frame Paintings…

Simple Frame Paintings

Supplies

• Watercolor Paper
• Tape (painter or washi)
• Watercolors
• Water bowl or glass of water
• Paper Towel
• Paintbrushes
• Piece of cardboard (optional)

Step one

Tape around the edge of the paper to create a white frame. This is such an easy step that makes the art look incredible in the end, and I’m kicking myself for never trying this quick framing tip before. Genius!

You can tape it to cardboard so your child can easily move the work around or tape it directly to the table. We tried both, and it certainly helps to have a glass table in moments like this!

Step two

Invite your child to paint.

That’s it! Easy, right?

Step three

When it’s dry, peel off the tape. This part was pure magic for the kids. I offered to help them, but they really wanted to do this themselves. Heads up: try to use low-tack/low-stick tape if you don’t want it to peel your paper off with it.

My kids enjoyed seeing the “Variations for Next Time” ideas and pulled out a couple rulers to experiment with adding lines. Bar also suggests making radial designs and adding oil pastels or crayons for a wax/oil resist experience. That would also be lovely

Not only was the process fun (hey, my children couldn’t stop with just one — so that’s a great sign), but the paintings also look amazing on the wall.

Order your copy of Art Workshop for Children today. You won’t be disappointed — I promise!

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