Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
Kids Art Box is a top-of-the-line art subscription box for children ages 3-12 that helps kids,
families and friends discover and bond through the magic of art.
There are two different subscriptions:
- Create Together Art Box (ages 3-7)
- My Artist Box (ages 6-12)
I was sent the My Artist Box for review. Boxes give children knowledge of artists and their works, as well as their art techniques. Each box will be themed around a different artist, and children will learn about that artist's life, masterpieces, and techniques.
My Artist Boxes are $38/month to month and will contain the following:
- A short biography of the artist and their most famous pieces
- Two art activities that guide your child through reproducing a renowned art piece
- One art activity to practice one of the artist's techniques
- One diorama about the artist and their life
Henri Matisse Box
Everything came in a brown cardboard box.
First Look
The box contains four envelopes, one for each activity in the box.
The Supplies
This pack of 12 premium oil pastels will be used for the projects in the box.
There was also a bottle of glue, two bottles of tempera paint, and a paintbrush.
Each project is in a separate bag.
This month's featured artist is Henri Matisse. Henri is a French artist from the early 20th century, and he's known for his bold colors and strokes. He is famous for many works, including “The Open Window,” “The Red Studio,” and “Women in a Purple Coat.”
You get a list of all the activities in the box, the supplies included, and what you need to provide. The supplies you need are very easy and things everyone has at home, like scissors, a ruler, bowl, pencil, and an old cookie sheet.
These are examples of some famous Matisse cutouts that your child can reference in a few of the activities in the box.
Les Poissons Rouges (Goldfish) Mixed-Media Reproduction
Henri has made at least ten pieces with goldfish. This activity recreates Henri's work, “Les Poissons Rouges.” The instructions give you step-by-step instructions to recreate the original piece.
The package included a black canvas, green, pink, and orange cardstock, silk leaves, a deli sheet, tissue paper, googly eyes, and paint/paintbrush.
This piece turned out so well. My youngest did this piece, and though it took the longest, it wasn't hard. The most challenging part was painting the white. The animated fish are my favorite part.
Polynesia, le Ciel Cut-Outs Reproduction
In 1941 Henri had surgery due to cancer and was unable to stand. He invented a new style of art: paper cutouts. He would take brightly colored shapes and add geometric shapes to the picture.
This project used watercolor paper, cardstock, lace, pearls, glue, paint, and a paintbrush.
The piece begins by painting 4″ squares, alternating light and dark colors.
The finished piece is trimmed in lace, with geometric shapes and pearls.
Collage and Symmetry Techniques
Henri Matisse's most famous works are his latest works, which focus on cutouts and collages. He called this process “drawing with scissors.” This project lets kids create their colleges.
There were several pieces of black construction paper, several colorful pieces of construction paper, and two pieces of felt.
The first activity involved creating cutouts and making your collage. My son enjoyed this activity, and the Matisse cutout sheet helped get accurate shapes.
The second activity was to experiment with reflective symmetry. When shapes are cut out, they are flipped to the side, so you can see where they came from.
La Gerbe (The Sheaf) Diorama
La Gerbe was Henri Matisse's last work. His last job was to create a design for a large ceramic wall for a wealthy collector. The first piece didn't go over well, so he made La Gerbe, which featured various shades of oranges, greens, and blues.
In this project, children will create a color bowl of brightly-colored abstract shapes.
For this craft, several colorful shapes were cut out of the construction paper, then glued to a balloon. The balloon is placed in a bowl to retain the shape and to let it dry.
We let the balloon dry for 24 hours to ensure everything was dry. It was a bit tricky to remove the balloon, but the bowl stayed intact. This is in the center of my kitchen table.
There was also a page of vocabulary words to further your child's learning.
Final Thought: Kids Art Box is a unique and wonderful subscription to expose children to a world of art. My children read the biography information with me, and enjoyed completing each of the activities. Each of the activities were engaging. If you want to try Kids Art Box, use the coupon “boxmom” to save $5.00.
Free Subscription Boxes
Do you like FREE SUBSCRIPTION BOXES? Click HERE to see my free subscription box list.