Snowman Painting with Markers & Watercolor Resist!

Did you know markers bleed and you can make the look like a painting? You probably figured that out if you accidentally spilled water on a marker drawing-ruined right?!

We used the “bleeding” accident to paint our snowman so they look 3D! IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! I love to use supplies in experimental ways-that’s how we grow & change as artists! The art teacher blogs Deep Space Sparkle and Mary Making also explored this same concept with their elephant projects (which are great projects to do with 2-3rd graders-I’ve done this with my students & they LOVED it!). Try it!!

Supplies: 12×18 tagboard, sharpies, Crayola markers, white oil pastels, watercolor paints, 2 sizes of paper or Styrofoam plates (to trace the body)

Instructions: (2-45 minute classes)

Use the smaller plate to draw the head of the snowman in the middle of the page.
Use the larger plate to draw the body of the snowman, slightly overlapping (behind) the head.
Draw in the eyes, smile & buttons with circles.
Draw the carrot nose as cone. You can use a yellow oil pastel to outline, then paint with orange paint later.
Draw all other details like hats, scarves, mittens, arms, & hills.
Use a brown oil pastel for the branch arms.
Outline everything in Sharpie.
Use a blue Crayola marker to draw a line INSIDE the outline of the head & body.
Use a paint brush & water to gently rub against the blue line, making it bleed into the head. Add more water if a harsh line is formed-the goal is for the color to fade into white (the color of the paper).
Use colored markers to color the buttons, scarves & mittens with the same bleeding process.
Let dry.
Use white oil pastels to draw snow & swirly lines (like Van Gogh’s Starry Night).
Finally, paint the background with watercolors & see the watercolor resist happen-Magic!