Are you starting to notice how much recycling can build up over time?  Here at GoMA we have lots of different ways to show you how to turn your recycling into creative art projects. Why not hold onto some of the kitchen roll or toilet roll tubes to make into animals inspired by the ones found in our ‘Domestic Bliss’ exhibition at GoMA?
The artist Niki de Saint Phalle’s cow ‘Vache vase’ stands on a plinth in the gallery. This can be seen as a stand alone sculpture, but it can also be used as a vase for flowers. There are also glass perfume bottles with colourful snakes atop on display. Snakes are a recurring image in Niki’s work and can be seen as menacing even though they are brightly decorated with vivid colours. Let’s take inspiration from this work to make a snake out of recycled kitchen roll tubes!

You will need:

• kitchen roll tubes
• scissors
• colouring pens or paint

Cut diagonally around the tube while rotating it and cut off a thin strip of it. Paint or colour with felt tips inside and out. Take inspiration from the bold and bright designs of Niki de Saint Phalle to decorate your snake – it works best if you do this with felt tips.

You can also try and make different animals using toilet paper or kitchen roll tubes. Let’s try and make an elephant!

Take a toilet roll tube and cut it in half across its length, cutting off a thin strip, as shown below.

Now draw two big elephant ears on the larger strip of toilet paper tube – you can copy our design below.

Paint or colour in all the pieces: two years and the thin strip we cut off – this will be the proboscis of our elephant (its nose).

Get a new toilet paper tube and cut a small window at its bottom. This will be the mouth of our elephant. Colour in or paint this tube as well.

Glue all the pieces together. Then use a black pen or pencil to add some details, like some big eyes and some lines on the proboscis.

Now that your elephant is done, what other animals can you make? Use your creativity and more toilet paper tubes to create them. You can take inspiration from our examples below.

Have fun with your Niki de Saint Phalle inspired animals and share your creation with us on social media!