Jean Dubuffet painted “The Cow with a Subtile Nose” in 1954, and I’ve always wanted to see how close I could get to the look with a good old crayon and watercolor resist.
I do recommend that you have your students use a light color for the cow, and a dark watercolor to get the most contrast for their wrinkles.
MATERIALS
- Drawing paper
- Black Sharpie marker
- Crayon
- Liquid watercolor paint, dark color is best
DIRECTIONS
- To draw the cow, first start with a large square with rounded corners. Older students may be able to follow the placement on the paper.
- The feet and udder are added below.
- A neck is extended from the body and a long head is added. Ears are drawn on the side.
- Eyes and nose are added to the face.
- The tail is drawn on the back. Lastly parts of the rectangle are erased so it looks more like a cow body.
- The drawing is traced with a black Sharpie, and colored very heavily with crayon.
- The paper is crumpled up, opened up and smoothed. Repeat 3 times.
- Dark watercolor paint is generously spread over the entire painting.
- Rub a paper towel over the entire picture to smooth. Moooove to a drying rack and enjoy!
