Beautiful Oops! & Merz

Featured Book: Beautiful Oops! by Barney Saltzberg
Featured Artwork: Mz 296. Soup (1921) by Kurt Schwitters

Kurt Schwitters (German, 1887–1948) invented the term "Merz" to describe his collage and assemblage works of scavenged scraps of materials. He believed that old tickets, buttons and other cast-off items were just as suitable to a painting as paint itself. With Merz projects like Mz 296. Soup, he wanted "to create connections, preferably between everything in this world."

In Beautiful Oops! by Barney Saltzberg, what seems like a mistake is actually an opportunity to make something beautiful. A scrap of paper, a spill and a smudge are full of potential when you use your imagination.

Inspired by Mz 296. Soup and Beautiful Oops!, make an artwork using scraps of paper, cloth, markers, scissors and glue.

If you don’t have access to the featured book, select something similar from your child’s book shelf or your local library. Many of the books are also available as read-aloud videos online.