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Saturday 27 February 2010

Paper Art.


Thought i would share this site with you. http://www.helenmusselwhite.com/index.htm
And especially this page http://www.helenmusselwhite.com/page13.htm
The paper art work is by Helen Musselwhite. All the beautiful art is created by hand using various textures of paper and then constructed together in layers.
I love this art so much. I also think children could have fun making these.
When i ran a Beaver Scout group (6-8 years, boys and girls), the children loved anything art and craft and especially when we made a gigantic deep sea diorama. It was kind of like this with an old wrecked boat, pirates treasure, the fish swimming around (on strings), seaweed and real sand and shells, plus a trunk full of pirates treasure.
The diorama was displayed in our local library to promote summer holidays reading, and books related to the the sea were displayed with it.
Together we made the gigantic one, and they also made their own dioramas in shoe boxes they got to take home and the back was where they stored their summer reading cards and charts etc related to the theme for that year.
Making these was fun becase the children explored various ways of constructing art, they got to use a wide variety of materials, and were left free to create. They also got a trip to our beach crabbing and collecting items, a trip to the library for a pirates treasure hunt and story telling from wonderful expressive readers, and a trip to our lake which is half sea water to pond dip, take photos and look at wildlife. They also made their own crab lines from wood, weights, string and a hook (most of them got the hook caught in their trousers and i spent all the time unhooking them). Not only that but its amazing how many children can not use cellotape so they learned that skill too, lol. I tried to make them learn stuff that can otherwise be boring in a fun and exciting way. Dont think they realised how much they studied and learned.
Mothers day will soon be here and thought this would be a nice idea for children to make a homemade gift. They could use shop bought frames, but could also make them from boxes covered with papier mache, then painted and decorated.

16 comments:

  1. Thanks for the link Nikki. They are beautiful. I actually own several pieces of cut paper art that I've acquired over the years. One is very small (only 4x6 framed) filled with flowers which I've had forever. The flowers have faded (framed long before the general public used museum glass) but I love it still.

    Are you sure you're not a Fine Arts major in disguise? lol When I was in school, I remember creating a piece from left over Christmas cards...the kind where all the cards in the box are they same. We cut out the images and layered them to re-create the picture, using dabs a silicone caulking, and added other paper embellishments. Now they have little foam risers for that purpose. My mother still has THAT piece. What fun!

    Tabs

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  2. Oh lol Susan. No fine arts happening here, although i did study design and got half way through a BA and then gave up because the kids were little and didn't have the time. Dont regret not seeing it through at all.
    Your pictures sound beautiful and especially that your mum still has yours from school. I don't think my mum has anything i made and wish she did because would love to display them.
    Nikki xxx

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  3. This is such a unique work of art! Inspiring.

    Jody

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  4. I love this type of craft and art work. I have done quite a bit of it over the years and still have some about somewhere! lol My Mum kept all sorts of my art work from school etc.

    I have an award for you on my blog. You already have it, but as I love your blog so much I have awarded it to you again. Just don't follow the rules lol you've done it already! ;o))))

    Michelle xxxx

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  5. dioramas were my FAVORITE project in school growing up. I would work on it immediately, as soon as it was assigned. I always got A+ on anything creative. guess that would be why I am an artist now. :-)

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  6. This is lovely Nikki. Thank you for sharing.

    Debie xxxxx

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  7. I'm always facinated by various papercrafts. One of my dreams is to learn how to cut sillouettes the "proper" way, by just looking at the profile and cutting.
    Have you seen Victorian pinprick pictures? They seem like they would be another wonderful mother's day paper project for children.

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  8. I always find your links fascinating! Thank you for sharing :). I will love to see what you have done with the children.

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  9. Hi Nikki,

    You know that I love your work sooooooo much. I a fan of you :o). And now I habe an award on you on my blog. I hope you like it ... and you do not have it twice ...

    Hugs,
    Lotti

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  10. ...the sunshine award is back to you i see...again...i'm not so original, but i received it few days ago, and really wanted to give it to these i really appreciate...like you
    xxx
    spery

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  11. OOh I like that glass! am a bit partial to coloured glass and seem to have collected a fair bit myself.
    Theres an award for you on my blog x

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  12. I am soo behind.

    These are beautiful Nikki....I remember making these at school and with my nan.

    We'd often spend the weekends making dioramas too...I used to love the winter ones where I used cotton wool for snow...I'd forgotten all about them lol.

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  13. Nikki checked the exhibitor list for KDF and saw you on there.. Yipee xxx

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  14. Hi, I like your blog very much, and I have an award for you on my blog :-)

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  15. There is the award waiting for you on my blog - hope you will like it :)

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  16. Hay un premio para ti en mi blog.

    Besos
    Aru

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Thank you for your comment xxx