Succulent Garden Still Lifes (5th)

Guys.. I've been so excited to post about this project!
I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE my 5th graders work! So beautiful! And best thing is that they were super proud of it too!
The subject of this artwork was 100% inspired by some art I found on Pinterest that linked back to the Jamestown Elementary Art Blog. If you're not already a follower - you need to be! Those ladies are absolutely fantastic at what they do!
I just added my own flair to it. :)

So to begin with we looked at a PowerPoint I put together about how Southwestern Native American art and its influence on more contemporary art from the region. Then we briefly talked about the harsh climate of the region and how it limits the type of vegetation that can survive there.
Afterwards I had my students do a practice succulent still life with me on a sheet of copy paper.
Once they were comfortable, they created their own final design on a piece of watercolor paper (some chose to use the arrangement from their practice drawing). Then they outlined in sharpie marker, colored in with oil pastels, and blended with baby oil.
Once all that was done, we finished up by painting the background with liquid watercolor paints.
This student didn't get to finish - but I was loving the technical look to it!

As kids were drawing I provided them with this handout I made to use for inspiration:
To download click on the arrows in the top right corner. This will open it up in a new window. You can download from there.


  1. Did you have actual succulents in front of them to draw from or images?

    1. That would have been ideal - but I didn't have access to any.
      They looked at images.

  2. I looked to purchase this lesson with power point etc. but don't see it listed anywhere? Is it available?

    1. Hey Emily,
      It's no longer in my store, but send me an email and I'll help you out. :)