Quick Takeaway
My collaborative art story shares why I began creating inclusive, group-based art experiences and what they’ve taught me along the way. After facilitating 60+ community and school collaborative art projects with over 2,000 participants, I’ve shaped a simple, repeatable framework called Pattern Play Collaborative Art. I want to help you do the same with clear guidance and helpful digital resources designed for educators and facilitators.
🎧 Listen to ‘Why Did I Start Creating Collaborative Art?‘
Note: Prefer another app? Search “Easy Collaborative Art” in your podcast player. Listen to the podcast trailer here.
Episode 6 Summary
In this personal episode of Easy Collaborative Art, I share why I began creating collaborative art and how my life experiences — especially parenting and teaching — shaped the way I run group projects. I discuss how breaking projects into simple, achievable steps helps everyone feel confident, relaxed, and able to contribute in their own way. You’ll hear how creating a safe, supportive, and fun environment allows people to surprise themselves, connect with others, and enjoy the process of making art together.
🎨 Hidden Game Alert: Collect the letters from Episodes 2–9 (your first clue starts in Episode 2!) and you’ll uncover a secret creative challenge to enjoy with my free Beginner’s Guide to Collaborative Art!
Episode 6 Highlights
- How parenting and teaching experiences influenced the way I facilitate collaborative art.
- The importance of breaking projects into simple, manageable steps to help everyone succeed.
- Creating a safe, supportive environment where people can explore, contribute, and feel proud of their art.
Episode Transcript – Episode 6: Why Did I Start Creating Collaborative Art?
Welcome to Easy Collaborative Art, the podcast where I explore fun, inclusive, and beginner-friendly ways to create art together, using my own process called Pattern Play Collaborative Art.
This episode is called “Why I Started Creating Collaborative Art” — and it’s a little more personal.
I’ve always been creative, and I was an art teacher for many years. Like everyone, what caught my attention gradually changed over time depending on what interested me. Becoming a parent ultimately led to what I do today, and what has become one of my passions.
I have three kids — each with fascinating personalities, interests, and learning styles. Over the years, I adapted in many ways to help them succeed, and I found — especially with my second child, who has special needs — that it was all about breaking things into steps, finding strategies that worked, and celebrating progress along the way.
That approach naturally seeped into how I run my group art projects — creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable, supported, and able to contribute in their own way, while still making something effective, eye-catching, and unique. People want to feel good about what they’ve made.
When you give people a simple starting point, let them explore at their own pace, and add little wins along the way, suddenly they relax. The “I’m not creative” worries start to fade, and people discover they can create something beautiful together.
I learned early on that breaking things into clear, manageable steps — and giving people simple, achievable wins — can make all the difference.
This works whether you’re guiding kids, teens, or adults. When people have a safe place to try something without the pressure of perfection, they open up. They take part. And the results are always richer when everyone contributes in their own way.
I felt such a thrill when people created in this way that I decided this was my new pathway, and I’ve been developing and refining the process with every project I do ever since. The simple structure, with freeform creativity built in, seems to offer everyone success. It’s so adaptable — and I hope you catch the collaborative art bug too!
That’s really why I started creating collaborative art — to make space for those moments where people surprise themselves, connect with others, and see their contribution as part of something bigger. Where they smile and feel proud, and so do I.”
Recapping 3 Takeaways from This Episode:
- Collaborative art works best when everyone’s unique input is valued.
- Your life experiences can shape the way you create and share art — lean into them.
- Breaking projects into simple steps helps everyone feel confident to join in.
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Podcast Home
Below is a quick ‘How to Start’ guide for running easy collaborative mural projects with groups.
Imagine you are a teacher, facilitator, or community group leader working with a group who wants to create a larger-scale, beginner-friendly mural together. Here’s a process you might follow for a project that is ceiling height, so no one needs to climb on steps or use ladders:
Preparation Stage: Underpainting
Begin by preparing a large surface, such as a wall or panel that can be attached to a wall after being painted indoors or under cover. Prime it with a three-part primer, then add a second layer of tinted primer using large brushes, rollers, or sponges. This softens the stark whiteness and creates a background that will peek through to the end. Completing this stage gives painters ownership of the process, helping them feel relaxed and confident, especially for public mural projects.
Step 1: Messy Playing
Provide large brushes and encourage participants to cover the surface with broad strokes, large circles, arches from the edges, and swirling spirals with clusters of simple marks. Limit the palette to three or four harmonious colours per layer for simplicity and impact. Offer large chalk prompts of circles, spirals, and arches to get them started, as participants often default to small marks. Keep them moving around and changing colours. This playful stage helps participants feel relaxed, confident, and comfortable contributing to a shared, large-scale collaborative artwork.
Step 2: Exploring
Once the base layer is alive with colour and exciting brushwork, invite participants to add patterns and clusters of marks. Use Pattern Play resources to get them started, then allow them to create and evolve their own designs individually or in small groups. Steer them away from branding, words, or copyrighted imagery. Encourage layering, varying size, and mindful placement so each person’s contribution becomes part of the larger mural, while still overlapping to build visual complexity.
Tip for facilitators: offer progressively smaller brushes as layers build, helping to create depth and visual interest while keeping it manageable on a large surface.
Step 3: Bling!
Finish by adding decorative touches. Participants can use medium or larger paint pens to add impactful details. Even small embellishments encourage viewers to move closer and notice the intricacies. Move around the mural to offer encouragement and support, making sure every participant feels acknowledged. This stage ensures everyone leaves proud of their contribution to the large-scale collaborative artwork. Consider adding the first names of all painters when adding the title of the mural, letting participants enjoy spotting their name and friends’ names later.
This process shows teachers, facilitators, and community leaders how easy it is to run beginner-friendly collaborative mural projects. It’s simple, fun, and a creative way for groups to connect through shared group art on a large scale.
Pattern Play Collaborative Art is all about shared connection and creativity.