Jackson Pollack Inspired Art Project

One of the art projects I wanted to do this summer was inspired by Jackson Pollack. It wasn't until we were actualy doing it that I realized we weren't doing it the Pollack way at all, LOL. (Yes, I do realize that I'm a WEE bit late in posting this - it's been sitting in draft form forever.) Anyway, Pollack was the guy who drizzled paint on the canvas, walked all over his canvas, splattered paint on the canvas, flicked his cigarette ashes onto the canvas, and just about every other unorthodox thing you can think of.

His art isn't my favorite, let's get that straight right off the bat. But I can appreciate his skill in color, movement, and composition. People who don't like this stuff tend to say "it's just a big mess." But really, it was Pollack's understanding of artistic elements that keeps it from being a mess. I may not be crazy about the style, but he really did know what he was doing.
Anyway, this was the project I needed the marbles for. We also used balls of various sizes for variety. While I was setting everything up, this is what Ben painted...

...using not a paintbrush, but a ball...



Hee hee. Anyway, here's our paint trays and marbles...




The marbles didn't roll around as easily as I anticipated. That was when I realized Pollack didn't use marbles, he drizzled. Oh well. Anyway, this did get a little messy:








Christopher's final product:

Ben's:

John's:

Mine:


It turned out this was the only art project we did all summer, which makes me sad. Especially since it wasn't as fun as I thought it would be. The kids seemed to like it, but I wanted my marble to roll better. Maybe I should have thinned out the paint or something. Hmm. Anyway, there were so many more projects I wanted to do with the kids, and still do. Maybe over Christmas break.
Want to try your hand at creating a Pollack inspired work of art? Click here for the virtual version. Seriously, do it. The entire screen is a blank canvas, and as you roll your mouse around, paint "drips" onto the canvas. Click to change colors. Whether you're into art or not, this is fun. My kids had a blast with it.