Nature Art Prints

Nature art is an easy way to get outside and explore the natural world around you and your creative side all at once! Experiment with making nature art prints using common plants from your yard, basic paper and tempera paint.

 

Use this straightforward “Paint & Press” process to get great results, fast! The instant gratification & the element of surprise makes this nature activity extra fun for everyone.

Reward: Shake Up Bronze!

  • Freshly gathered collection of plants
  • Tempera Paint
  • Paint Palette or Paper plates
  • Paint Brush
  • Art Paper– a thin smooth surface paper works best
  • Scrap Cardboard or Kraft Board
  • Scrap paper or newspaper
  • Cups of water/paper towels

Take a walk outside to gather a collection of different types of leaves, ferns and other plants to experiment making a variety of nature prints with following the 4 easy steps below! Larger ferns and leaves held up the best. So gather your nature specimens right before your ready to start this activity.

 

Step 1

Use a soft brush to paint directly on the plant. Try to limit your color palette to just blue, green and yellow to keep the prints looking fresh.

 

Step 2

Use a soft brush & water based paint (tempera) to paint directly on the plants you gathered outside. 

 

Step 3

Next, carefully place your plant with the painted side down on top of a clean piece of art paper. Place a scrap piece of paper or old newspaper over the back of the painted plant and use your hand to firmly press the painted plant onto the paper creating a nature print.

 

Step 4

Remove the protective paper backing and carefully lift the plant off the paper to reveal your first nature print. You can make a second impression using the same plant to press the remainder of the paint off onto your paper creating what printmakers would call a “ghost print” or the second lighter print. You can see the different layers I built up to create an interesting effect below making two impressions from each coat of paint.

 

Tempera paint dries really fast, so this becomes a fast paced creative process that’s full of surprises!

No need to wait for the paint to dry in between impressions – just keep adding to your nature art print until you feel it’s done!

Fuente: SSWW