Let's Make Spin Art!

It's Saturday. It's summer. Let's make some Spin Art, shall we?

Abraham De La Torre Makes Exquisite Spin Art

Abraham De La Torre is an American painter who specializes in Spin Art. He's even listed on Wikipedia's Spin Art page in the "Fine Art" section. Here's one of his Spin Art demos (there are lots more on his YouTube channel):

Giant Spin Art

These folks made their own Spin Art platform, capable of handling objects up to 60 inches square. I won't be offended if you skip ahead -- though you'll miss the slow-downs throughout, showing you the art in various stages of completion.

Time Lapse Spin Art

Spin Artists Bob and Pete Goldstein make the magic in this short clip. Music by The Shins.

John Cusack and Damien Hirst Make Spin Art

The unlikely duo of John Cusack and modern artist Damien Hirst actually makes some pretty good Spin Art. Price? If you have to ask, you can't afford it.

Washing Machine Spin Art

The video can be slow at times, but here's evidence of how a washing machine (running either on "spin" or "agitate") can be used to create Spin Art. Be forewarned: you're gonna get paint in and around the machine, so you might not want to try this at home. At the end of the video, there's some bonus footage involving throwing odd items into a dryer -- including a bowling ball. Whoa.

Making a Spin Art Bike

Got a bicycle, a tub, and some engineering skills? Make a Spin Art bike!

Ernie Learns About Spin Art

Ernie (of Bert &... fame) learns a bit about the craft from master Spin Artist Nicole.

If you're curious about spin art techniques and history (including a list of fine artists who work in spin), check out Wikipedia's page on Spin Art. Best over-enthusiastic line from that page: "Since the canvas is usually rotating at a high rate, it is difficult if not impossible to view the image on the canvas until the platform has stopped spinning, thus creating a sense of surprise and uncertainty during the creation process." Indeed, professor!

Also fun: you can buy your own Spin Art machine for twelve bucks. It's tiny, but hey.

Time lapse Spin Art image by Bob Goldstein, via Wikimedia Commons.