Have you ever seen the ocean? It’s fun to play in the sand and swim in the water. The ocean has waves that push water in and out. Can you move your hands like ocean waves?
This work of art was inspired by the ocean. It’s called “Shimmer.” The artist Rebecca Rutstein went on a deep sea dive in a submarine. On the dive, she saw an ocean animal called a siphonophore [sy-FAH-nuh-for]. A siphonophore is a bunch of tiny animals that live and move together like one big team. They also glow in the dark. As you walk by Rutstein’s artwork, its lights flash like a siphonophore.
Let’s imagine how it would feel to sway in the current at the bottom of the ocean:
- Pretend you are an animal deep in the ocean and your hands are tentacles, like an octopus or a jellyfish.
- Swing your arms gently, side to side. Bend forward and keep swaying your arms.
- Come up slowly and keep moving your arms. Bend and sway until you feel as free as a siphonophore moving through the water.
- Take three deep breaths and slowly stop moving your arms.
Now it’s your turn to make art inspired by the ocean!
For this activity, you will need:
- white paper
- colored paper (optional)
- blue washable paint
- paintbrush
- paper plate or extra paper for a palette
- scissors
- pencil (optional)
- glue or tape
To make your ocean art:
- Cover your work surface for easy clean-up.
- Pour some blue paint onto a paper plate or extra paper.
- Dip your brush in the paint and use swirling, wide strokes to paint the motion of the ocean on a sheet of white paper.
- Let the paint dry.
- Cut out a simple fish shape from colored or painted paper (sketch it first if you like).
- Glue or tape the fish onto your ocean painting.
- Admire your ocean art.