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The Rain Was My Paintbrush

rain-painting-carolyn-dube

I painted with rain, not in the rain, but with the rain.  Thanks to Mother Nature, the rain acted as my paintbrush to blend and smear the color.  A huge bonus is that I did not have to clean  this paintbrush when I was finished and I was able to make so many so quickly.

 

Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube

 

It had been raining so I decided to use that to my advantage and paint with it!  First, I smeared acrylic paint on the canvas.

 

 

 

 

 

Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube

Then I put the canvas outside in the rain.  I angled it against a picnic table.  This way the rain would hit the canvas and smear the paint around for me in a great drippy way.  It did not take very long for the rain do its magic.  There was a small amount of color that washed onto the cement but it was not there long as the rain washed it away too!

 

 

Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube

 

After about 5-10 minutes I brought this in and set it down flat on the studio floor.  I don’t care what gets on my floor but if you care about yours, just put down a plastic trash bag and/or newspapers to catch any drips.

How long you leave it in the rain will change how much color is washed away, so keep an eye on it.  It was so much fun to watch it mingle and blend!

 

 

 

Here are some other canvases the rain and I made together using any brand of  paint I could find.  Love that the rain likes any of my acrylic paints!  Now I have a stash of backgrounds ready for the next layer.

Before the Rain                                              After the Rain

Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn DubeTutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn DubeTutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn DubeTutorial for Painting with Rain by Carolyn Dube

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sharing with my friends at Paint Party Friday and Creative Everyday.

What non-traditional things have you used as a paintbrush?

 

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  • butterfliecrafter April 10, 2014, 2:45 pm

    that’s so neat, can’t wait to see what you do next with them

  • Judy Shea April 10, 2014, 2:50 pm

    No way. That is fantastic!!! Well, I guess you could always put it in the shower quickly if you have a drought. OMGosh.. imagine some of your stencils over these.. or gelli plate? OH MY!!!

  • Mary C. Nasser April 10, 2014, 3:00 pm

    Love the before and after pics and the effect of the rain!
    Perfect post for April and all it’s showers!
    You have been very busy and INSPIRING!

  • Mary Beth Shaw April 10, 2014, 3:15 pm

    These are super cool, I have always wanted to try this. Of course it is gorgeous and sunny today, hehehe. I will.not.complain.

  • Kathy Gledsdale April 10, 2014, 3:17 pm

    How pretty, I sometimes paint with either me finger or my credit card.

  • Sandra April 10, 2014, 4:45 pm

    Lovely, Carolyn. We just had three or four very rainy days when I could have been doing this!

    I have painted with a tea bag more than once. Well, I’ve accidentally put my paintbrush into my teacup so why not reverse the process!

  • Ruth L April 10, 2014, 5:52 pm

    Carolyn is this post for me? He he… got the idea, but with my luck we have sunshine for the next 3 days…

  • Tamiko McCurry April 10, 2014, 5:56 pm

    ok ok ok.. I am sold! Now to do this without my family and or neighbors to think I am looney! and to blog about it and to share.. I am sure I will get some rain!! lolol

  • sandeeNC April 10, 2014, 7:07 pm

    Oh my, the neighbors will think I have finally gone over the edge!! Can’t wait for the rain now 🙂

  • Lucinda April 10, 2014, 8:07 pm

    These are gorgeous Carolyn!

  • Tracy April 10, 2014, 10:28 pm

    Oh, I LOVE these! The uncertainty of what you’ll end up with and seeing the paints mingle in ways you can’t make deliberately. Gorgeous!

  • Terri Daniels April 10, 2014, 10:52 pm

    Beautiful! Definitely on my “try this” list!

  • Raine April 11, 2014, 2:25 am

    I LOVE these! I must try it! I wouldn’t be living up to my name if I didn’t, now would I?!?!?

  • Paula - Buenos Aires April 11, 2014, 8:31 am

    Reminded me of a notebook I had for experimenting. I threw all kinds of things onto it and I once took it to the Iguazú waterfalls. 😀
    The second one is my favourite. I wonder what you´ll do with it. 🙂

  • Kirsten Reed April 11, 2014, 8:37 am

    What a fabulous way to use Mother Nature in your art! The final result is so delicious I want to eat them!!! Bravo on thinking outside the art studio :))

  • Corrine April 11, 2014, 10:17 am

    What a fun idea…the unexpected of Mother Nature cooperating with your art making. xox

  • valerie-Jael April 11, 2014, 11:19 am

    Beautiful. I use my fingers, paper, bits of cardboard, pot-scourers – all fun! Valerie

  • Jana McLaughlin April 11, 2014, 11:49 am

    Who would of thought to do this?! Creative idea for sure!

  • Faye April 11, 2014, 12:55 pm

    Carolyn, you are a genius! How original can you get? The results are beautiful.

  • Jackie P Neal April 11, 2014, 2:12 pm

    Great idea Carolyn! gotta love Mother Nature- she just keeps giving! Love your palettes! beauteous!

  • Carol Samsel April 11, 2014, 2:33 pm

    OMG ! Love this idea!! Beautiful backgrounds and a great way to brighten a rainy day. Can’t wait to do this with my grandchildren 🙂

  • Jo Murray April 11, 2014, 3:05 pm

    Cool! Love the way the paint has dispersed and run. Clever you.

  • Denise spillane April 11, 2014, 3:52 pm

    What a great idea. It hardly ever rains here so maybe when I run my sprinkler!

  • Marva Harvey April 11, 2014, 4:34 pm

    These are beautiful! Living in the desert, I would only have this opportunity about once a year. 🙂 It’s a good thing monsoon season is coming soon, so I can give it a try.

  • Monica Smith April 11, 2014, 5:50 pm

    Well that is something we could never do here! Rain and water is becoming extinct. Oh I hope it comes soon , want to try this.

  • gloria April 11, 2014, 6:27 pm

    What a great idea. Looks great! The hands on the table also look awesome.

  • jean marmo April 11, 2014, 7:39 pm

    They are predicting rain tomorrow. I just might have to try this!

  • Dolores April 11, 2014, 8:44 pm

    Wow, these turned out really neat. Can’t wait to see how you finish them.

  • Gloria Zucaro April 12, 2014, 12:26 am

    Wow I love the drippy-ness! What fun, you did it again. What an inspiration you are!

  • froebelsternchen April 12, 2014, 1:14 am

    Your ideas are unbelievable!

    Fab!

  • Laila April 12, 2014, 4:29 am

    What a very clever idea. Where I live it’s raining a whole lot so I could save alot of work cleaning my brushes. I’ll simply have to try this.

  • Annabelle April 12, 2014, 9:50 am

    I believe the very best artist is nature but you had the clever idea to work together with her. Gorgeous work!
    Thanks for sharing, will try it some time.

    Annabelle : )

  • Win Dinn April 12, 2014, 11:27 am

    Love your idea of having Mother Nature do your work for you. Now if you could just encourage her to take care of the house along with the artwork! The results are both fun and fabulous, and I’ll bet you’re chomping at the bit to develop those paintings now!

  • Annette G April 12, 2014, 1:42 pm

    smashing backgrounds. Happy PPF, Annette x

    http://nettysartadventures.blogspot.co.uk/

  • Linda Kittmer April 13, 2014, 12:21 am

    What a fabulous idea Carolyn! You creative imagination just blows me away! I love the results you got and will certainly try this sometime soon.

  • Marjie Kemper April 13, 2014, 10:10 am

    That’s a very fun play time, indeed!

  • sue April 13, 2014, 10:11 am

    what a great idea!! they all look so interesting!!

  • Gina Sismilich April 14, 2014, 3:39 pm

    What a wonderful idea. I love how those backgrounds turned out – can’t wait to see what they turn into next!!!

  • Jo April 18, 2014, 6:10 pm

    Very cool!!