“A beautiful thing never gives so much pain as does failing to hear and see it.” ~Michelangelo
Oooo…I’ve been so excited about this post and it’s finally here at last! We are teaming up with the genius Red Ted Art blog for her “Kids Get Arty” series. It’s all about discovering the great artists and enjoying all the beautiful art that this big world has to offer.
For our first “great”, we have chosen Michelangelo. Oh, I had a few other choices. I consulted my sister and nephew, as they are big art fans. They suggested many, and in fact up until a few days ago, we were going to explore the world of Picasso. Oh, I had a big “found art” project in mind and couldn’t wait to teach the smalls the word “assemblage”.
But my teenage boy had a different idea. He flat out told me I should do Michelangelo.
“Seriously Mum, they can paint on the ceilings! What kid wouldn’t want to do that?”
And so here we are…painting our own Sistine Chapel. And he was right. The smalls thought it was the best idea in the entire universe! One of them even exclaimed,
“I LOVE DAY CARE!!” Hehehehe…warmed my heart a little, I’ll tell you.
And so we learned about the great Michelangelo. We went on the computer and we looked up all the questions the smalls had and found all the answers. Did he do it by himself? How big was the ceiling? How long did it take him? How did he reach so high? What did he paint on the ceiling, anyways? What’s a fresco? Wait, isn’t that a soda pop? No darlin’, that’s a Fresca!
So here we will share our journey and show you the answers we found to our many questions.
Here is where we started…
I used our Crazy Fort Kit to build the frame. Then I covered the ceilings with white paper, using the oh, so glamorous duct tape.
The smalls got suited up and ready with their palettes.
Oh, and that color theory we worked on yesterday? Oh, these wee ones went right to mixing and showing me what they had learned!
When the painting began, it was a beautiful thing to watch.
I have put together a few photos for you…all of them sharing the answers we found to all the smalls’ questions. All of them showing the progress of our own little Sistine Chapel.
All of them featuring little artists emulating someone so important in the history of art….
Here is the view if you lay down and look at our ceiling above…
Simply beautiful.
And then all too soon,it was time for lunch. Sigh. But I suppose artists work hard and they need sustenance!
I do hope you enjoyed this little post, and maybe even learned something new. I am so excited about this Kids Get Arty series and can’t wait to explore another “great”!
Thanks for stopping by!
~Arlee, Small Potatoes
Small Potatoes 
Oh my gosh! This is so fabulous! There are no words…. 🙂 Luv Luv Luv
Thank you, Jen! Your comments sure mean a lot, really!:):)
Just freakin awesome!!!!!
WOOOT! Thanks, my friend!
BEAUTIFUL! What a FABULOUS idea. I am in awe. Fab fab fab!
Thank you for joining us on our Kids Get Arty journey. You are fabulous.
Maggy
Fantastic in every way!!!
Thanks,Jenny 🙂
This is absolutely beautiful, and such an engaging way to teach about a great artist, while allowing your own great artists to create a masterpiece! Love it!
Thank you, Liz! I loved doing this with them, and they absolutely loved it! Can’t wait to start learning about our next artist!
am I too old to come to your day home?
Ambre, you are always welcome!!!
woow.. This is so fabulous!
I love it! Such a fantastic idea!
This is simply the COOLEST idea ever. I love love love every bit of it. Great to experience how the artists must have felt painting in an awkward position!
Thank you for sharing our Kids Get Arty journey!
Maggy
I absolutely LOVE, love, love this! Now I need to figure out how I could set up something similar. It’s really fabulous!
Just seen this..l am so impressed and l have to do with with my young Art studunts..thanks for sharing.xxlynda
I’m happy you found us! I hope your little students enjoy!
Thank you for sharing this wonderful idea! I am sooooo copying you. 🙂
What a fantastic activity idea. Such a wonderful way to teach children about Michelangelo.
The funniest thing is that today we used our Crazy Forts Kit at home for the very first time and I recognised the construction pieces on a pin about this post on Pinterest, which then lead me to your blog! Am going to copy your idea during the holidays with my littlies.
BTW, I love your apron hanger and styling in the room (I have those same curtains in my daughters bedroom).
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Arlee – Love, Love this idea!! What a super cool way to explore art {I wish I attended your daycare too!} You have inspired me!
if you are in a classroom setting, you can have the students tape paper to the bottom of their desks, lie down on the floor (on a blanket or something and paint. They can pretend they are lying on a scaffold! Looks like fun:)
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Hi Small Potatoes, I recently featured an art history lesson for children on my blog, Art History Mom. I included a link to this fun project. Thanks for sharing it. You can view my lesson here:
http://www.arthistorymom.com/renaissance-art/kids-meet-michelangelo-the-reluctant-painter-2/
Thank you so much! Your post is excellent!!
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Loving this experience and LOVE that you are correcting the myth that Michelangelo painted while lying down!! I write about traveling with the kids and love connecting with like minded families. Thanks for the fun post!