Straw Blown Paintings

Here is an activity submitted by Heidi Bolster, CTRS.

via

Materials:

·         Paper (preferably thicker paper for painting

·         Acrylic paint

·         Water mixed with acrylic paint to thin the paint for the straw-blowing portion of the activity

·         Paint brushes

·         Drinking straws

Description

·         Patients will paint a background using whatever creativity they like onto the paper until the whole page is painted

·         Patients will use straws to blow the “water thinned” paint across the background painting

·         Patients can create trees with this technique, or they can make spiders/monsters, etc. for a Halloween activity.

Processing questions:

·         How well were you able to control the paint when you were blowing it with the straw? Was it frustrating when it didn’t go the way you wanted? Were you able to create the image in your mind, or did it turn out different than expected? Was it frustrating, and how did you deal with those emotions?

·         Does this happen in life sometimes? (When things don’t go as planned?) How do you deal with this in your life? What are emotions you feel when things don’t go as planned? How do you deal with those emotions? How do you want to deal with those emotions? What can you do right now, while you are in the hospital, to help you manage your emotions and choices when life seems to go a different way than planned?