Holiday Printmaking

This group's project was based on printmaking. We began by brainstorming some of our favorite holidays and the drawings that could go along with them. Then, the class drew a scene or picture that represented a holiday of their choice onto the provided foam trays with a pencil. We were to draw large, simple pictures and shapes so they would show up once "printed" with ink. We then got to draw another design on another foam tray using geometric or organic shapes. I drew my holiday tray as the 4th of July with a lake and a large firework for emphasis. My second tray used organic shapes to make a design. Lastly, we rolled different colors of ink onto five copies of our drawings to dry, and wrote on a note card why we picked the holiday drawn.

 

As an extension activity, I would have the students draw one picture that they were able to spend more time on perfecting and getting just right; even if that meant starting over more than once. This way, students can focus on one picture and be able to pick their favorites out of five prints. When there are two pictures, there are only two to three tries to get a color and quality print made of one picture. I also found it time consuming to have to wash off two separate pictures to make more than one copy. This would allow for fewer rinses and more focus on one quality picture.