Bubble Print Mats and Fish Prints

As a "convenient" result of 

helping my mom clean out HER art studio

last weekend, I recently acquired

some old pre-cut mat board art mats. 

(Now you know one of my real motives for "helping" my mom clean up her messes!)

The mats were a bit of a hod-podge but nothing we couldn't fix

with a bit of acrylic craft paint.

I passed them out among my students in art camp this week.

(first I asked them to print their names on the backside of the mats

so we could tell them apart later....)

Then, I passed out plates of  blue and green acrylic craft paint

small paint brushes and two sizes (big and little) of bubble wrap scraps. 

The kids had a great (messy!) time

painting the bubble wrap

and printing their mats with it.

The final results were a bit of a faux-finish/marbled/bubble finish.

There may have been a "bit" of bubble popping as well. : ) 

Then, we laid them out in the grass

to dry in the front yard

sunshine.

While our mats were drying, we got to work  printing up some fish

(Gyotaku-style) on Japanese printmaking paper.

(The lesson can be found in my Summer Art Camp Ocean Fun Art Lessons PDF)

The final projects were beautiful! and I hope...  their parents found them 

to be "frame-worthy."

I'm sure they foundpaint everywhere at bath time!

Happy Mess-Making!

fondly,

pink and green mama

MaryLea