I’m guessing that most of us have some done some traditional leaf printing in the past? While lots of fun the results aren’t all that exciting are they? Pop Art Leaf Printing however, takes a classic Autumn painting activity from “meh’ to “WOW!”
These leaf prints really do POP and make a fantastic wall display you’ll want to keep up all year round. It’s a great leaf printing activity for kids of all ages and can be done individually or as a large collaborative group making it perfect for both the home and classroom.
While you’re here don’t forget to take a peek at my other fun Painting Projects too.
Pop Art Leaf Printing Materials
- Bright Coloured Paper US / UK
- Neon Bright Acrylic Paints US / UK (These do not need to glow, but are extra fun if they do!)
- Large Sheet Heavy Weight Construction Paper US or Foam Board
- Paper Towels US / UK
- Brushes
- Glue
Instructions For Pop Art Leaf Printing
Pop Art Leaf Printing is a great art project to introduce kids to the work of other Pop Artists like Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol. It’s the combination of brightly coloured paper and neon coloured paint that makes this Pop Art Leaf Printing so effective. Astrobrights has a fantastic range of bright coloured paper that will work really well.
Start by collecting a range of leaves from the yard or from a Nature walk. A selection of different leaf shapes works well.
Cut your coloured paper sheets into halves or quarters. To get the best colour combinations for their pop art leaf printing children can find it useful to arrange their leaves on the different coloured sheets and pick a vibrant paint colour that zings with each paper colour.
For this tutorial I’ve combined 4 leaf prints to make one Pop Art finished piece, but you can add as many leaf prints as you like. Can you imagine how amazing a whole class project would look combined? WOW!
Once You’ve decided on your leaf printing colour combinations paint each leaf the colour of your choice.
Carefully lay each leaf face down on their coloured paper sheet. Be careful not to move the leaf! (You can see from the paint on the back of the leaves that I was able to use the same leaves for lots of different prints. It’s easy to reapply paint or even wash it off and use a different colour.)
Carefully lay a sheet or two of paper towel over the leaves and push down to make a clear print. Make sure you only push down and not side to side. If you move the leaves they’ll smudge and smear.
Remove the tissue paper and the leaves and set aside your leaf prints to dry.
Creating A Pop Art Leaf Print Collage
When all of the leaf printings are dry you can glue them onto your construction paper to make one big leaf print art piece. I think they look amazing. So vibrant!
Pop Art Leaf Prints Extension Activities
- You might like to explore the effect of a collage using just one leaf repeated in different colours.
- Experiment with overlaying different coloured prints of the same leaf. This can give a really interesting shadow/3D effect to your Pop Art Leaf Printing.
- Leaves can be cut in half and two different halves can be printed side by side together to make an unusual whole.
- A collage of cut leaves could be printed together to make one large abstract leaf.
- A large leaf shape can be drawn and lots of little leaves can be printed inside it to fill it with colour and texture.
I hope you have lots of fun with this colourful leaf printing idea.
More Fun Autumn Crafts For Kids:
