4/10/2014

Creating Collages With Kids

Originally, this project was going to be about the Dada movement. I thought kids, especially rebellious preschoolers and tweens, might enjoy an art movement that was all about breaking the rules. Plus, let's face it, the typical preschooler art project (as well as my typical art project), is usually more about the ideas than actual beauty anyway. But then I tried to find kid friendly books about the major artists behind the Dada movement, like Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray and Hannah Hoch.


But guess what? No one has written a kid-friendly book about Marcel Duchamp, the man who entitled a sculpture "Fountain", then revealed that the "sculpture" was an actual urinal. I'm pretty sure 8 year old boys would love a book about that, to tell you the truth. The only kids' book relating to Dada that I could find was this:




Granted, it looks like a pretty cool book and it explores the idea of being true to yourself, which is an idea I really like. But it doesn't give kids the basics on Dada, or how the artists and writers behind Dada encouraged the use of collage, photo montage and found objects in art.









So, if you'd like your kids to learn about Dada before doing the craft, you can read about Dada here. Otherwise, you can just skip to the collage portion.

I made the above collage when I was in college, because I had a lot free time in college. I loved making collages back in the day. I used magazines here, in case you couldn't tell. With kids, magazines can be a fun place to start (though I don't recommend having them cut up Cosmo and Glamour, which I'm pretty sure is what I did to make the above collage), provided you have an appropriate stack of magazines around and your kids are good at cutting. Newspapers can also work. But don't limit your kids to just newspapers and magazines.

I have a collage of the kids' old artwork and cards and whatnot in my office:



You could let your kids use art work that you're not preserving, or school work or family photos that didn't make it into the scrapbook. Wrapping paper scraps are another fun collage texture. If you want to keep the spirit of Dada alive in their work, encourage them to use lots of different textures and types of paper. Or have them break away from paper altogether. They can make nature collages with objects they find in the yard, or arrange their toys and take a photo for a toy collage. The possibilities are endless.

If your kiddo is still too little to be trusted with a glue stick, have her use stickers. Or cut shapes out of construction paper, put the glue on them yourself and then let the kid stick them together. Tearing the paper instead of cutting it can be fun for kids who aren't comfortable with scissors yet.

With older kids, you can talk about the message behind their collage. Help them think of a cause they care about and find ways to show that in their collage. Or just encourage them to glue whatever and wherever. Either way they'll be getting in touch with the Dada movement.

20 comments:

Masshole Mommy said...

Such a good idea. I am so bad when it comes to crafts with my kids, so thank god they do them at school LOL.

Jennifer Steck said...

I love collages. While my son is grown so he wouldn't be interested, I am. You've inspired me. :)

Erica said...

This is a great idea. I love the idea behind crafts for lazy parents. It's not that I'm lazy but crafting can be a lot of work so ideas like this are perfect! Thanks!

JT and Amanda said...

This would be a fun activity to do with my kids. They enjoy things like this! Thanks for sharing.

Pam said...

This is such a great craft idea! My kids always loved collages, and they're an easy art project when you can't think of something fancy.

Annemarie Leblanc said...

Those are so cute what an adorable idea I love the cat with the mustache :-)

FabulousPerks said...

I love reading about different crafts to do with the kiddo, my bookmark is filled with a bunch. I can't wait to get crafty with him.

mail4rosey said...

Making collages out of magazines is a great idea for the kids! I vaguely remember making magazine collages, how funny that I forgot until now!!

Unknown said...

My son loves doing collages! When I get the diy itch, I usually get him to help out and we have lots of fun!

Unknown said...

What a great idea! I bet my kids would really enjoy this.

Anonymous said...

We create collages all the time, we do different ones depending on what we are learning that week. We might have one that is just the number 3 - finding 3's is fun and teaches my little one numbers in a fun way.

Amberlee said...

I love making collages. I haven't made any recently but I'm sure my girls would love it. I will have to make one soon with them :)

Liz Mays said...

I remember doing this in school and at home just for fun. Great reminder of a great idea!

Amanda said...

This looks like such a fun project! Thanks for sharing!

Casa Vilora Interiors said...

Kids are masters at collages. My daughter was excellent at that when she was little

Tough Cookie Mommy said...

I often create collages with my students and it is a great way to organize images and ideas in an artistic way.

The Frugal Greenish Mama said...

We love doing crafts. My kids enjoy them just as much as I do and this is a great way to preserve memories.

Aisha Kristine Chong said...

These are wonderful - last year, I spent a lot of time making collages for inspiration - and tons of crafts like these too.

Denise Gabbard said...

Very fun project to do with a little one-- I think I'll have to do this with my littlest granddaughter.

Amber Nelson said...

Collages are always so fun to do. I love the cat one.