How To: Pendulum Painting

For the Pendulum Painting, you need to gather supplies. For this piece, you are going to need a space where things might get a little messy. You can use a canvas or any other form of one, but it needs to hold the paint on it. Next, you are going to need paint and paintbrushes. Then a water bottle, string, and a weight of some sort to make a swinging contraption. It's suggested that you put a tarp down to catch the paint that doesn't fall onto the canvas. Now you're ready to go.

The first step is to paint a background. For the background, you can do whatever you'd like. It could be plain or it could be a stary-night, it does not matter. I chose to do a black fading into blue and red. The pendulum part will be the center part of it all.

The set-up is the most difficult part. For this, you should attach your water bottle to the weight so it gets a nice, smooth flow to it. I cut a hole in the bottom of the water bottle to put the paint in. I then stuck a nail in the top to make a hole where the paint flows out. Next, put them all together and attach the contraption to an elevated surface with a string dangling from the top. Then, when you're ready, put the paint in the bottle but make sure to have something covering the little hole in the top. Once your tape is on whole and your bottle is attached to the weight, move on to the next step.

The final step is to cock back and let it go. What you are going to want to do is pull the weight and paint back, then pull off the tape that is covering the hole. Let the paint run for 2-3 seconds to make sure that it is flowing correctly. Next, hold the weight at a 45-degree angle, cock back, and let go... Gravity will do the rest. Once the piece looks like it is coming to an end, grab something that can catch the paint and catch it as it drips down. Then, you're all set!

As you can see, mine messed up. I accidentally put the paint at a 90-degree angle, making it so that it did not go in a circle. Another mistake I made was that it was too watery, causing it to flow too fast, making the splotches appear. If you want the best results. I advise that you come in at a good angle, so you do not have to catch it and do it over again.