Virtual Refrigerator: Mexican Folk Art - Amate Painting

Welcome to another edition of the Virtual Refrigerator! This weekly blog hop is co-hosted by A Glimpse of Our Life, Angels of Heart, Homeschool Coffee Break, and Every Bed of Roses. We all cordially invite you to add your link sharing the art that's on your Virtual Refrigerator and then hop over to the other blogs and admire what's on their Fridges!

   

This is a project Kennady did related to our Social Studies this week. Amate (pronounced "ah-MAH-tay") is a type of paper produced from bark, and it can also refer to this style of art painted on that paper. In ancient times, the Aztecs used amate paper to record data or as gifts. Today, Mexican artisans paint birds, plants, and animals in whimsical designs on amate paper.

I found a few different websites with instructions for making our own version of amate art. Here is how we did it. First, we cut a large rectangle from a brown paper shopping bag, and then crumpled it up and smoothed it back out several times to "soften" its appearance. Then Kennady drew her design with a black sharpie. (Some of the instructions differed on this point, suggesting that the design be drawn with chalk first, and outlined in sharpie after painting. Either way would work fine.)

Then Kennady painted the design using bright colored tempera paints. Traditional amate uses bright tropical colors, or almost neon colors, with white accent. Usually there is no background color.



Here is Kennady's final design. We will have to figure out a way to mount it for display.

If you'd like to find instructions for making your own amate art, you can check out the following websites:

KidWorldCitizen: Mexican Folk Art: Amate Paintings

Incredible @rt Department: Amate Bark Paintings

Van Aken: Mexican Bark Paintings

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