Recycled Paper Pulp Bowls

by Kris Keller, APS Elementary Art

Grade Level: All

Objectives:

SW recycle discarded colored paper by pulping and reshaping into bowls and other objects.

Materials:

Colored paper scrap, plastic buckets, strainers, household blender (more than one if possible), Old t-shirts or handy wipe towels, sponges, white glue, plastic bowl forms one for each student, plastic wrap, large cookie cutter shapes ( for the youngest students).

Bowl examples or pictures.

The book, Paper into Pots by Gerry Copp is a great resource.

Procedure:

Discuss recycling. Why it is important to use our resources carefully. Show visuals of a variety of recycled art. Discuss how paper is made and how recycling the paper that is already here can save trees. Have students work in groups to sort paper by color and tear paper into approximately 1”squares. Put them by color into enough water to cover the scrap.

In pairs have students start blending the pulp. 1 small handful of paper scrap to a blender full of water. Blend each batch for 15 to 20 seconds. Pour the pulp onto a cloth set in a strainer over a bucket, do 2 batches per student. Let the pulp drain a bit, squeeze out most (not all) of the water and dump the pulp into some kind of plastic container so that the next pair of students can start blending.

Students then add some white glue, 2 or 3 tablespoons, to their pulp and mix it thoroughly.

Students choose a bowl shape, tear off a piece of saran wrap big enough to cover it and start pressing the pulp to the shape of the bowl. It is easier for elementary students to press it into the inside though the outside works too. Students should work the pulp with a sponge to help remove the excess water. Small round sponges used for ceramics are great for this but any sponge will do. Remind students to really press the blobs of pulp together and to try to get the pulp to an even thickness around 1/4th inch.

Leave the bowls in the forms to dry (this won’t take long in a sunny spot) and by the time the students come back for their next art class the bowls will be dry and ready to decorate with the left over pulp.Some of the pulp can be “pulled” or poured into sheets that can be cut up and used for decorating the bowls later.

Students who are waiting for their turn to blend can be choosing a bowl form and planning a design to add to their bowl later. If a student finishes pressing his/her bowl early put them to work blending extra pulp for another class.

For the youngest students. Have most of the pulp made except for enough to demo the process and have them pour a large cup of pulp into a cookie cutter shape on a screen. Then cover the shape with a rag and press out the water with a sponge. Carefully remove the cookie cutter and let dry.

For decorating dry bowls use shapes from the extra sheets of paper you made from the pulp. Students should thoroughly brush white glue onto the back of each decoration. The bowls can be sealed with Mod Podge or some other sealer but this is not absolutely necessary.

Vocabulary:

Renew, Reuse, Recycle, pulp, blend

Handy things to collect:

5 gallon buckets. Great for storing extra pulp. Restaurants are often willing to give these away. Disposable plastic bowls from restaurants make good bowl forms. Old window screens. Old t-shirts.

Assessment:

SW demonstrate an understanding of recycling by repurposing discarded paper into an art piece by pulping and reforming. Students will explain in writing or verbally how this project can help protect the planet.

NM Visual Arts Standards:

1B.1 Apply a variety of materials, tools and techniques for producing art.

3B.2 Discover connections between visual art and other content areas.

4A.1 Solve artistic challenges using preliminary sketches, divergent production and various sources of inspiration.

4B.2 Examine the success of personal/ artistic intent in the creation of a work of art.