Thursday, July 31, 2014

What is it about Zentangle?

I came across a book entitled "One Zentangle a Day," about two years ago. I've doodled some of the days' activities and jumped around a lot. A LOT! I've not yet acquired any official Zentangle merchandise or even half of the suggested supplies for that workbook. [Mind you, I have pretty much all that 'stuff" already. It's just a matter of finding it--most of my art stuff, nay, most of my "stuff" has been packed in boxes for two years, in storage for half of that].

But that's not the point (although it has something to do with why I've jumped around with it).

I found the art method prescribed as a meditative tool to help heal spiritual and physical scars and read a lot of stories of how people implemented it into their daily routine. I was looking for pain management as well as a means to maintain focus (or get it to begin with, depending on the kind of day or week I'm having). I needed help as I had surgery four years ago now and I'm still experiencing "issues."

I like that I can draw. I like that I can use pretty much whatever is at hand--I started with a spiral bound ruled notebook and a Sharpie. Works okay. Easily accessible. But that misses the beauty that can be found in the melange of doodles, tangles, dribbles and mere lines. I've progressed up to some fancier papers and pens and have a lot of ideas for future projects. I have incorporated the method into some of my other art and it feels good.

And along the way I have found I can focus for a while on what I'm doing, or in some cases, what the doodle wants to become. I can sit for a lot longer now than I had been as I don't notice the "issues" so much. At least for a little while. And if I'm wide awake at 3 AM, I have something quiet and relaxing to do!

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