This half term at Merry Hill we are learning about a new focus artist called Yayoi Kusama. She is better known as “the princess of polka dots!”
We are going to be imitating her style for several weeks before experimenting independently and making our own mixed media collage of a vegetable. Last week we picked our favourite picture of Yayoi Kusama’s work, stuck it in our sketchbook and annotated underneath.
This week we had a lot of fun exploring different types of pattern using 4 different tools: wax resist crayons, colouring pencils, felt tips and watercolours. We could think of “zig zags, waves, straight lines, curved lines, dashes, dots and checkers”. We then did a table top gallery where we stuck post it note compliments onto each others’ work. We wrote what we liked about their pattern and what it made us think of. For example: “I like your wave patterns, they make me think of the seaside”.
How you can help at home: See the world in polka dots like Yayoi by making a polka dot viewfinder!

- You will need:
- Cardboard tubes
- Flat cardboard (recycled cereal boxes or packaging works well!)
- Coloured felt tips
- Scissors
- Sellotape
- Hole punch
Or try creating your own collage by using recycled materials. This will open up lots of conversations about how to look after the environment as well as focusing on how we can create different textures.