Spooky season is upon us and we searched the interWEBS for the coolest, most ghoulish art activities around. This year we decided to focus on SPOOKtacular, artist inspired art projects to infuse your Halloween fun with a bit of art history, too.  We hope you find so IMPspiration for your classroom! (That pun was a bit much…I apologize.)

Make Your Own Munch

This really cute mixed media project allows you to transform a photo into an homage to Munch’s famous work, The Scream. The author gives you suggestions for books about Munch and some ideas to keep the conversation going once the project is completed. The instructions didn’t specify what paper to use to print the photo but card stock will work just fine as I discovered with my sample (above). One of the post-activity prompts in the article asks your students to list what they might me screaming about. My list includes missed deadlines and students cutting paper with my fabric shears.

If you don’t have access to a digital camera or would rather that your students incorporate some drawing skills, this project is similar but features self drawn portraits created in the style of The Scream. This particular variation gives your students a bit more artistic freedom to interpret Munch’s work in their own way.

Whichever project you choose, it’s sure to be a SCREAM!

Mondrian Spider Art

There aren’t really any instructions in this blog post but you get a sense of this creepy crawly homage to Mondrian from the photos. The author also included photos of the related match worksheets that focus on the number 8. Spiders, Mondrian, and Math? That’s Gr8 fun! (Get it…8 legs…I’m so sorry I’m like this.)

Petrifying Picasso Projects

I’ve moved on from puns to alliterations, I see. Regardless, these three Picasso projects are so much fun…it’s SCARY!

If you haven’t tried the Roll a (insert art medium/artist here) games in your classroom, you’re missing out. Students love them and are engaged in the process from start to finish. This Roll a Picasso game is not free but for $5 you get a complete lesson plan, including all the handouts and worksheets. My favorite part of these type of activities is how different the final products are, even though your students have to draw whatever is rolled!

Similar to the Roll a Picasso project are these fun Picasso Monster Collages. The author used this project in her 4th Grade classroom but could be appropriate for most grades, depending on their comfort level with scissors. She also includes a link to a kid appropriate video about Picasso and his style. The link to the video she showed in her class, Dropping in on Picasso, no longer works but you might be able to check it out from your local library. The ISBN is 1562903136 9781562903138.

For the younger crowd, this Picasso inspired jack-o-lantern project allows them to deconstruct their original work. They create a construction paper jack-o-lantern, cut it up, and arrange the cut up pieces into a really cool Picasso inspired collage. I would even let them create two original jack-o-lanterns, just in case there are tears involved when cutting up their original work.

And Speaking of Pumpkins…

This project uses Q-tips to create a jack-o-lantern and presents an opportunity to teach your students about pointillism and Georges Seurat. This method would work for any number of Halloween characters, from a bat to Frankenstein’s monster. And if you’re fine with mess, students could use their fingers to make the dots-this is a really flexible and frighteningly fun project!

We would really be missing an opportunity if we didn’t include a Yayoi Kusama pumpkin project! This is a fall classic and easily adaptable for artists of all ages. The author lists a great book for teens called Yayoi Kusama: From Here to Infinity! but if you work with younger artists Yayoi Kusama Covered Everything in Dots and Wasn’t Sorry might be more accessible.

If you’re a fan of pop art, this Romero Britto inspired pumpkins project is for you! Britto’s style is bold, bright, and very kid friendly. He includes elements of cubism and street art into his pop art driven style. Not a fan of the autumnal color palette? Then encourage your students to make pumpkins more in line with the bright colors Britto uses. This project can easily be altered to work with whatever supplies you have on hand.

I hope you’ve discovered a project or two that you are DYING to use in your classroom! If you do, make sure you tag WMA and mention The Educator’s Lair if you post your students creations on social media. We LOVE to see what you’re doing in your classrooms!

Artfully yours,

Brook