Glow-in-the-Dark Art

Everyone loves Glow in the Dark Art. Need I say more? I know you want to try it…For our next light month project we tackled a little process art in the dark! If you follow Babble Dabble Do you know I recently started exploring process art with my kids, inspired by some amazing art moms I’ll be introducing at the end of this post. Process art is about the process of creating, NOT the final product. It’s a hands off approach to art with kids. Adults set the scene and then back away.

For this art scene we got our rave on! I pulled out the best glowing art materials from our stash, plugged in the black light, and invited the kids into the kitchen for a little after dinner art. If I hadn’t had to photograph it I might have pulled up a chair and enjoyed a little desert (or wine) while watching the kiddos create!

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Glow in the Dark Art

Materials

• Fluorescent Paints– I used some fluorescent fabric paint I had in my stash
• Blacklight  
• Black Construction Paper
• Neon Glitter (optional)
• White Stickers (optional)
• Paintbrushes

Instructions

Note: This project should be done at night or in a really dark room!

• Step One Place all your materials out on a table along with black paper. I suggest taping down the paper or using a large sheet of black butcher paper if available.
• Step Two Plug in your black light as close as possible to the work area. You may want to prop it up vertically. Turn it on.
• Step Three Turn out the lights! Invite your kids into the room and let them have fun!

I didn’t need to do much to sell this project to the kids, the minute my daughter saw glowing paint she was in.  The only involvement I had was reminding them to check out the glitter which they then happily dumped all over their art. It felt a little bit like fairy dust! I also was on “light duty” propping up and moving the black light around to light up their paintings as they worked (and in the process dropping said light on the ground). Luckily this black light is a beast and still worked afterwards!

Tips

• You must use a powerful black light! Invest in one; it’s worth it! The one we have is $20 on Amazon. One black light bulb placed in your room’s light fixture will NOT work, you need juice here friends!
• Use fluorescent materials; they glow like crazy! At first I planned on doing this project with white items until I realized things like white glue and salt don’t glow in black light. That’s when I started rummaging through my art closet to find materials that glowed. I highly recommend the neon glitter! It’s really spectacular in the dark!
• Use black paper! You want the neon colors to pop and they look best when painted onto dark surfaces.

Looks Like

Que Houxo. Never heard of him? Neither had I until I started researching glow in the dark art. Que Huoxo is a Japanese street artist who works with fluorescent paint and black lights to create massive glowing works of art. He also does it live. He  is part performance artist, part graffiti artist. Either way you will be captivated by his large-scale glowing art. I’m definitely adding him to my must-watch list of up and coming artists!

Conclusion

Glow in the dark art for kids is a surefire hit. I mean, really, what kid is not immediately entranced by the sight of something glowing? Now let your kids create with it! I really enjoyed coming up with this process art in the dark project and I think you too will love trying it with your kids.

And don’t miss out on more art here on Babble Dabble Do! Your child’s inner Que Houxo thanks you! Subscribe below or like us on FB