Nature Prints with the Help Us Understand Grief (H.U.U.G.) Program

Sometimes grief can feel big and overwhelming. To cope with these big grief feelings, it
can be helpful to slow down and engage with your creativity and nature. Connecting
with nature helps our general wellbeing and to feel more relaxed and peaceful.
Connecting with nature to create an artwork can help us release our big emotions and
funnel them into something creative.
Printing with nature is one way to connect to our creativity! Nature printing can be used
to create impressions not only from plants, but from other natural materials such as
feathers, vegetables and shells.
How to Print with Nature
Materials:
Paints (acrylic works best)
Paint brushes
Scissors
Paper (any kind you would like, however a thicker paper like cardstock or watercolour
work best)
Natural materials: Leaves, twigs, branches, flowers, potatoes, bark, feathers, shells,
rocks
Other printmaking materials: Styrofoam, string, paper, lace, doilies, bubble wrap,
sponges
Any other materials you’d like to add!
Here are some tips for printing with nature:
1. Go for a walk in your community. You may want to collect items from nature such as
leaves, flowers, pedals and tree bark. You can also use potatoes, stamps, bubble
wrap, paper cups, sponges, your hands and anything else you would like to make
prints out of.
2. Cover your work area with a mat or newspapers. Prepare different colours of paint
on your palette. Set out your paper.
3. Press the leaf, painted side down, onto your paper. Press firmly for several seconds
to transfer the paint from the leaf to the paper.
4. Remove the leaf to reveal the print.
5. Repeat the process using different colours and different nature materials. Once your
artwork is complete, set it aside to let the paint dry completely.
6. Admire your creative expression!