If you’ve been out and about somewhere, and are lucky enough to find a little painted rock hiding in plain view, congratulations! You’re now officially a member of the biggest artistic craze that the world has seen in recent years – painted rocks!
What started as a for-fun project created by one person has now turned into a global phenomenon. The premise is fairly simple – paint a rock, hide the rock, and wait for a stranger to find it, pick it up, and smile.
Painting Rocks And Hiding Them
Why is this activity so popular? Well, the reason is fairly simple. The reason why people paint rocks is to spread joy and positivity to others in their local community through the medium of art. Imagine if someone is down in the dumps and having a really awful day – and then finds a tiny painted rock masterpiece on the sidewalk or at the bus stop that brings a big smile to their face. It’s a lovely feeling to be able to do that, which is why the painted rock community has grown to a considerable size in recent years.
Social media and painted rocks
One of the biggest reasons for the explosion of popularity in the activity of painting rocks is probably social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Most rock painters today write hashtags on their rocks so that whenever someone finds them, they can look up the hashtag and get themselves involved in the painted rock community if they’re interested. In some cases, the finder can also get in touch with the original artist to show their appreciation for their work!
However, it’s good to always remember that the activity of rock painting shouldn’t be used to gain fame or popularity. The message behind rock painting is to spread positivity and joy to others through art, and one should always remember to create their painted rocks with the intention of kindness in their hearts that they wish to share with others.
How can I create my own painted rocks?
If you’re interested in joining the rock painting movement, you don’t need any specialized tools. In fact, you only need a rock, a paintbrush, some paint, and the ability to let your creativity run wild!
The paint you use should be acrylic paint, because of its non-toxic nature and the flexibility of acrylic paint to adhere to the smooth, curved surfaces of pebbles, to the rougher, flatter surfaces of rocks.
And once you’re done with painting your rock, always ensure that you finish your tiny masterpiece off by sealing your rock with a finish that is weatherproof. You’ll be leaving your rock out to face the elements (wind, rain, shine, snow) before someone eventually finds it, so using a spray-on or a brush-on waterproof sealer will keep your rock artwork intact and pristine for someone to enjoy when they find it!
How do I hide my painted rocks?
When you’ve finished creating your tiny rock masterpiece, the next thing you’ll want to do is hide them!
One of the most common things that rock painters do is to label some instructions on their rock. For example, you can choose to write down “keep or rehide” on the back of your painted rock, to let the finder know that they can bring it home should they wish to, and they’re not stealing someone’s front lawn decor.
And if they eventually wish to share the joy that they’ve experienced through finding your painted rock with other strangers, they can get out there and re-hide the painted rock in a conspicuous place for other people to find and crack a smile at. The cycle then continues from there. The best part? – rocks take a super long time to disintegrate, so you know your little rock art masterpiece has the chance to travel all over the world in the hands of people who find complete joy and appreciation in your creative work!
You can also instruct the finder to share their newly acquired painted rock find in the local rock painting facebook group (paint a Facebook symbol to make it more fun and intuitive!), and get them excited to join in the fun and joy of spreading positivity to the local, and eventually global community of rock painting lovers!
Can I hide them anywhere?
Although painted rocks are meant to be found by anyone, anywhere, there are some laws that prohibit painted rocks from being left behind in certain spaces. So there are a few places where you shouldn’t hide pained rocks.
These include national parks, which usually have a “leave no trace” policy on their trails and campsites. This policy is mainly enforced to prevent litterbugs from leaving their trash on-site. So allowing people to leave painted rocks on or off the trails may confuse people of the exceptions to the laws, so it’s always best to steer clear of national parks.
You also shouldn’t leave your painted rocks on private property or on business premises, as this land is bought and owned by people or companies, and trespassing on private property may run you afoul of the law in most states. Even if your intentions are good, some people might not be able to tell the difference even if you explain what you’re doing, and some might even get annoyed at your presence in their property.
Rock Painting Is Fun
Rock painting is anything but new – in fact, our earliest human ancestors have been painting on cave walls and on rocks for thousands of years. This is probably the reason for the recent surge in popularity of painting rocks all over the world.
In our digital era of smartphones, tablets, computers, and screens, it’s easy to forget what truly makes us human – rock painting taps into some of our deepest primal instincts to create art and to spread the joy of kindness and appreciation to our fellow man, and to get together in our communities of friends and family to make art and share it with each other to enjoy.
So what are you waiting for? Join in the fun of rock painting today!
