Working on a transparent paper opens up a lot of opportunity to play with shadow, transparency and colour. Have a go at creating different shapes and layers with the various material you have access too. Drawing, painting and collage are all really fun techniques to try out on transparent paper, as seen in this video. With your finished piece explore the light that makes its way through your creation by holding it up against a window or light source (do you have a torch?). What can you see? Does anything look different with light behind it? Are any colours being projected through? What could to add or do differently on another design?

What you will need:

Transparent paper otherwise known as acetate paper which can be bought at most stationary stores
Optional extras to create -
- A permanent marker/sharpie
- Cellophane
- Collage material
- Paint (acrylic)
- Liquid glue - PVA or a glue stick.
- Scissors

What to do:

For this experience we are going to work with transparency paper, a black sharpie, (acrylic) paint and cellophane. Make sure to set yourself up on top of a table cover, like a table cloth, newspaper or large piece of paper. You’ll need a jar of water and some paper towel to dry your brush.

Draw a pattern or design on to your transparent sheet using a black sharpie. Think about the shapes you are creating and if they are going to be big enough to fill in with paint later on. Fill your page with as much or as little as you would like.
Grab your coloured cellophane and begin roughly measuring and cutting out the shapes you would like. Glue the cellophane down using the glue stick.
Open up the paint containers and dip your paint brush into the paint and begin filling in your design with the colour as you wish. Ensure you wash the paint off your brush in your jar of water, every time you want to change colour. Carefully dry off your brush on the paper towel before choosing the next colour.
Once you have filled up your page with colour, move it to the side to dry. Once dry, begin exploring the effect of light behind your work.

Extension ideas:

Before deciding to glue or make any marks on to your transparent paper, explore the material by holding them up to a light source, does it let light through? how much light? could I add another layer?

Perhaps you could think about cutting the transparent paper into a particular shape. It could make for a beautiful coloured bird or butterfly wings. You’re not limited by its A4 shape. So let your imagination run wild.

Could you trace an image or pattern by placing the image under the transparency sheet and use the sharpie the draw on top?

Transparent paper art