Van Gogh Projects for Kids – 10 Inspiring Ideas to try with your kids, celebrating ‘Inspire your Heart with Art Day’ starry night, sunflowers, art & craft.

“If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint’, then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced’ – Vincent Van Gogh

This quote by Van Gogh applies not just to art, but to pretty much everything in our lives. Each one of us has an artist inside, especially children, and a day like ‘Inspire your Heart with Art Day’ is the perfect occasion to bring it out in the open! This day is observed on January 31 every year, to remind us of the different ways art can inspire us, and how our art can inspire someone else.

This year, why not introduce your kids to one of the greatest artists of all time – who else, but the person behind the quote above – Vincent Van Gogh.

Van Gogh’s work has a certain child-like simplicity to it, especially in the use of bold colors. A child is bound to be interested in the details in his pictures and this is a great learning opportunity for him too. Art is great for kids and not just in developing a sense of culture. The organization ‘Americans for Arts’ report that children who regularly practice art are four times more likely to do well in academics.

In case you’re wondering how to acquaint your child with Van Gogh’s art, don’t worry; here is a list of Van Gogh projects of varying complexity, but all kid-friendly. Before starting on the project, do show your child a picture of the original artwork, and ask her to describe what she sees in it. Here are 10 ideas for

10 Van Gogh Projects for Kids

Inspire your Heart with Art Day

3D models of paintings This is a great project for older kids. It includes making a three-dimensional model of any of Van Gogh’s paintings and helps them understand perspective. This might take some time though, so it’s best attempted during holidays.

Sunflower Collage In this collage based on the famous Van Gogh painting ‘Sunflowers’, a vase is painted on a sheet of paper first, and sunflowers are made with yellow tissue or crepe paper. This is a great exercise for simple flower making, and the effect is just stunning!

Starry Night Ornaments This is a beautiful craft project based on the painting ‘Starry Nights’ by Crayola. In this project, basic craft store supplies are used in creative ways to recreate the swirling patterns of the original painting. The result is out of this world!

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Van Gogh Coloring Pages This is for the younger ones, who shouldn’t feel left out! There are 30 coloring pages to download and print from here, most of them perfect examples of Van Gogh’s swirling style. Show the kids the original pictures first, so that they know what colors to fill in.

Chair Pop out card This craft is inspired by the painting, ‘The Chair and the Pipe’. This is a deceptively easy craft to do, although it looks complicated! All you need are colors, papers and scissors and you can make your own Van Gogh chair! Some more instructions on this craft are available here.

Oil Pastel Art This is a simple enough project to do, with step by step instructions. Even young children can do this easily, and all you need are oil pastels. The artwork is based on the ‘Wheatfield with Crows’ painting and has the use of bright, bold colors.

Field of Poppies Tempera Artwork This is another painting project, based on Van Gogh’s ‘Field of Poppies’. This project uses tempera paint and is a wonderful exercise in brush strokes and dabs for older kids. The result is a riot of colors that is worthy of being framed!

Oil Pastel Lamp One of Van Gogh’s first paintings is ‘The Potato Eaters’, a great example of how light and shade can be depicted in art. This project focuses on the lamp in the painting and recreates the effect of light and shade using oil pastels. The instructions are very specific and not too difficult for older kids. 9
. Room Diorama Craft Van Gogh’s painting of his room is a very famous one and has a lot of detail included in it. Kids can use their imagination and make their version of the room, keeping the structure the same and adding elements of their own. Use different colors and textures to make it interesting! 10.
Van Gogh Costume And when we’re talking about being creative, why restrict it to crafts? A homemade Van Gogh costume is a perfect tribute to the great painter who asked us to challenge the voices that hold us down. Make sure the costume includes the telltale red hair on the face, along with a palette and brush – everyone will recognize it!

Besides these, you can get your kids books about Van Gogh which has lots of pictures with kid-centric text. And of course, you can draw your own inspiration from his paintings and create your own art projects! After all, if that is not inspiration with art, then what is?