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How to Do Traditional Navajo Sand Painting

The Navajo tribe is the largest tribe in the United States, with land in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah. As such, many of the traditional Native American arts familiar in the U.S. and abroad result from Navajo traditions, including traditional Navajo sand painting. In sand painting, powdered minerals are mixed with sand for color and used to create patterns on a flat expanse of cleaned sand. It's possible to recreate the look at home employing tempera paints and card stock as the base. Add adhesive spray, and you can save the paintings for enjoyment years afterward, whereas traditional sand paintings rarely last past the next strong wind or rainfall.

Things You'll Need

  • Bowls
  • Sand
  • Powdered tempera paints in a variety of colors
  • Card stock
  • Pencil
  • Spray adhesive
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Instructions

    • 1

      Fill several bowls with sand. Choose bowl sizes based on the size of the sand painting you intend to create.

    • 2

      Stir a different tempera pigment into each bowl of sand. Adjust the hue by the amount of pigment added. Make deeper colors by adding more pigment. Stir the sand and pigment together with a wooden stick to mix the colors evenly.

    • 3

      Create a base for your painting by setting a sheet of card stock on a flat surface. Draw an outline of your design onto the card stock with a pencil. Make the outline as light as possible, creating a visible impression, but not one that will show through a sand covering.

    • 4

      Saturate the card stock with spray adhesive to make your painting permanent.

    • 5

      Sprinkle the colored sand onto the saturated card stock where desired while the surface is wet. Apply in a thin layer to avoid wasting the colored sand.

    • 6

      Spray the applied colored sand with the adhesive after completing the picture to seal the sand in place. Allow it to sit for 72 hours to allow the adhesive to set before moving the frame.

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