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Presenting Young Writers and Artists

How-to: Activity

How to: Paint an Octopus World

You will need:

  • Pencil
  • White paper
  • Brushes
  • Oil pastels or crayons
  • Watercolor paint
  • Water
Octopus World completed drawing

1. Reference images of ocean creatures can help with this project. Octopuses have eight legs so when drawing the main focus of this project it works well to draw about five or six of the squiggling legs first, in front and then the remaining two to three floating legs behind those front legs. Next add in two large eyes on the lower half of the head of the octopus.

How To Paint an Octopus World, step 1 - illustration

2. After the octopus is drawn, (it should fill the majority of the paper) students can draw smaller fish, baby octopuses, crabs, starfish, seaweed etc., maybe even a scubadiver?

Octopus World - illustration -Step 1

3. Now it’s all about color. Use oil pastels to add various patterns of colors all over the octopus. Students can get as crazy as their imagination wants to take them. See how many different patterns and combinations down each leg they can come up with. Choose to use the oil pastels on the small creatures, or just on the octopus.

Octopus World - illustration -Step 3

4. Watercolor the octopus, painting the body and legs with multiple colors. Stripping various colors, letting the edges of each color blend into one another is a wonderful technique of watercolor paint. The oil pastels will resist the watercolor paint so painting right over the oil pastel designs works very well. Paint the smaller creatures with exaggerated, various colors is important too. Lastly, painting the ocean water can be done with a combination of blue textures (and other colors if desired) and solid washes of color. All the textures and patterns help to illustrate the constant movement of ocean waters.

Octopus World completed drawing