Starry Night Paintings & Dioramas

These cool paintings are inspired by Vincent Van Gogh's famous painting, The Starry Night.

Materials

  • Canvas

  • Black acrylic paint

  • Rubbing alcohol (91% isopropyl)

  • Paint brushes

  • Glow-in-the-Dark duct tape

  • Glow-in-the-Dark paint

  • Paintbrushes

  • Miscellaneous materials

  • Glue

  • Spray bottle

  • Cardboard box

Instructions

  1. Water down the black paint to a thin consistency.

  2. Cover the canvas with the paint very quickly.

  3. Use the spray bottle to dribble/spray some drops of the rubbing alcohol over the wet black paint. Watch as the paint and alcohol mix

  4. Paint the inside of the box black.

  5. Let the canvas and box dry overnight.

  6. Trim the canvas if necessary and tape or glue to the back of the box to create a background.

  7. Use the glow in the dark paint and duct tape to create a starry scene. With other materials, add other objects to the scene---just remember that they won't glow.

  8. Take the diorama into a dark place to see the scene glow.

Tips

  • Test out the project several times to make sure that the alcohol will react correctly. It can be tricky.

  • For another project, create just the canvas as the cover for a book about constellations.