Rock Art with POSCA and Colourverse
Learn to rock art with POSCA Paint pens and Colourverse.
Rock art has always been popular with the oldest recorded being over 17,000 years ago and was of a Kangaroo in Western Australia’s Kimberly region.
Since Covid joined us we have seen a real surge in rock art with our neighbourhood encouraging kids and adults alike to leave moments in the form of their own rock art to be discovered throughout the streets. It was a joy finding them and residing them for the next person to enjoy.
If you are looking to get amongst this creative activity here are a few tips and tricks the team at Colourverse have put together to help you.
| 1. Find your perfect rock |
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The choice is yours here as there are no rules. Just pay attention to the general colour, shape and size that will suit your creative idea. Be aware that no two rocks are the same and some are more porous than others. We prefer a smoother rock with a flatter edge as our surface as it's easier to draw on and keeps are POSCA Pen tips in good shape. |
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2. Preparation |
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Clean and dry are key as dirty or wet rocks will interfere with you work of art. Plan your theme and select the appropriate rock that will best suit the drawing you want to do, for example we are drawing solar system rocks so we try and match the colour, texture and size to the planet we are looking to illustrate. We event went as far as preparing the background (Space) on each rock. Thank about your overall theme and how each rock component will tie your collection together. |
| 3. Start Drawing |
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At first it can be a bit finicky especially on smaller, rougher or uneven stones, but as the saying goes, practise makes perfect. If you’re just starting out aim for larger, smoother rocks so your paint pen tip glides smoothly over the surface. Note - The rougher the rock the more abrasive it will be and will be hard on your paint pen tip. The good news is that POSCA Paint pen tips are reversible and changeable in most of the range. POSCA paint is buildable meaning you can do as many layers as you like or need. We recommend to start with the background first, allow the paint to dry and then build on top of the previous layer. As the paint is layer-able, don’t stress if you make a mistake as you can simple paint over it with a fresh layer, or simply wash it off with water. Porous rocks absorbs more paint and dries quicker so you may need to apply multiple layers. The smoother or shiner the rock the longer it will take to dry so be careful not to smudge the paint.
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| 4. Finishing |
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After you have finished you drawing and painting on your rock and you are ready to ’set it in stone’ and make it permanent then using 2 coats of spray varnish should fix you paint to your rock. Hold the spray can about 30cm from you rock and spray in a constant continuous motion for good coverage. There are 2 types of varnish Matte of Gloss, your choice as to which one you want. |
At the end of the day it's about exploring and coming up new, interesting ways to create something unique. It's in our genes, after all we have been doing rock painting for over 17,000 years.