2.4 Activity: “Magic Foam”
Please create a non-representational abstract art using several layers of easy processes that results in the creation of a complex final product! Think about the nine principles you just learned as you design your project and try to apply as many of them as possible.
- Keep things complex but easy to do.
- Layer processes within the same activity.
- Give choices to promote individual expression.
- Draw on strengths; do not privilege intact cognition and fine motor skills
- Create structures to create freedom
- Support their independence
- Be creative yourself and use artist grade materials.
- Celebrate their creativity, on the spot (be authentic) and at a larger, public event. Use art talk.
- Maximize possibility for “flow” experiences:
- Clarity of minute-by-minute goals.
- Immediate feedback from the activity itself.
- Task matches skills.
- Being in control.
Don’t make REPRESENTATIONAL art like this:
![](https://scrippsoma.xyz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Deborah2-298x300-1.png)
Instead, try to make a NON-REPRESENTATIONAL or ABSTRACT art like this:
![](https://scrippsoma.xyz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Deborah3-224x300-1.png)
To do this project:
- You MUST use the Magic Foam somehow in the project. The Magic Foam pieces can be incorporated into your painting or it can be used as a tool to create your painting.
- You need to use additional materials that you can find (any type of paint/ink, brushes, markers, scissors, collage pieces, etc.). Please see below for some ideas.
Inexpensive art supplies you can purchase:
![](https://scrippsoma.xyz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Art-Supplies-300x270-1.png)
Painting tools found around the house or at a hardware store:
![](https://scrippsoma.xyz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Found-Objects-300x185-1.png)
Painting tools found in Dollar Stores (we use artist grade paint, paper, and brushes, but tools can be found in recycle bins, Dollar stores, etc.)
![](https://scrippsoma.xyz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dollar-Store-Supplies-300x227-1.png)
Here are some ideas to consider when using the Magic Foam:
Perhaps…
- Cut it up into unrecognizable shapes?
- Glue it onto a paper towel roll to make a printmaking tool?
- Attach it to a small or large block?
- Use it under a layer of tissue or foil?
- Do a “rubbing” on tissue by coloring over pieces scattered on a table, & then tear those pieces into smaller pieces