Batik Pumpkins

I love the art of batik and the colorful cloth it produces, but the traditional hot wax and dye process can be difficult to do in a classroom. Our 4/5 class used a modified form of batik to create these colorful pumpkins, then added some leaf prints in gold and silver to finish their designs. 

After closely studying pumpkins we brought into our classroom, students practiced making contour drawings to gain understanding of their shape and form. They carefully drew their own pumpkins using warm fall colors in crayon, the wax part of the process. The drawings were crumpled up to brake up the surface of the crayon, but not tear the paper. The pumpkins were then completely covered in black tempera paint in place of traditional dye, and the paint was wiped off the surface. The black paint stayed only in the areas where the crayon surface had been broken up. The results are shown below, aren't they great? Click on any image to get to the picture gallery for closer viewing.