Using berries to create natural inks is a lovely, messy process. We used elderberry, black berries and bilberries to create squishy marks. The inks were also used with shaped stencils to produce these striking layered images. Experimentation and play are an essential part of the creative process; a way to learn about the characteristics of materials and how happy accidents can produce wonderful outcomes.
The children used watercolour crayons to draw close up drawings of hawthorn, holly and berberis berries. They used recycled cardboard to make circular frames, which were coloured with oil pastels, wax crayons and coloured pencils. Mixing and matching the closest reds to the berries enhanced observational skills. Once dry, the inside of an elderberry branch is very spongy. The children used a skewer to push the inside of the branches out and then threaded the small segments onto wool. Appropriate coloured beads were added and the wool wound around the frame.
Lots of lovely autumnal textures were created using a range of clay tools indented into slabs of clay. These included rubber tipped brushes, lace and stamps. We've been delighted by the progress the children have been making. Their use of arty language and understanding the different processes used to make assorted clay objects has been very rewarding.
We laid out squared paper, soft pastels and magnifying glasses to encourage the children to look really closely at the shape and details found on different berries. We suggested they produce enlarged drawings in contrast to the small circular observational images they created earlier.
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