Arts and Crafts

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Senegal

In Senegal, artists make beautiful paintings using colored sand. You can make your own sand painting.

Sand painting

Materials needed:

Colored sand (available at large craft stores, or use directions below to dye your own sand.)
Thin cardboard or poster board
Felt-tip pen
Glue
Spray shellac (optional)
Newspaper

To dye sand:

1 Tablespoon liquid fabric dye or 1 teaspoon powder dye
1/2 cup sifted sand
3/4 cup hot water
Plastic cup or container

Mix dye with hot water. Add sand. Let soak for two hours. Sand will be at the bottom of the cup. Carefully pour off colored water. Dry sand by spreading it on newspaper or paper towels. After dry, pour sand into cup or paper plate.

To make sand painting:

Draw design with pen. A simple landscape with the ocean and mountains is typical of Senegalese pictures. Cover an area of the picture with glue (not too thick). Cover with sand and let dry. Do all of one color at a time.

When one color has dried, dump the excess into a newspaper so that it can be poured back into the container. Continue with other colors until finished.

Spray finished painting with shellac.