My Tangled Heart

"Tangled Heart" canvas

I'm teaching some introductory Zentangle classes over the next two months and practicing my own art everyday.  I did this design first as a 3.5 x 3.5" tile and then as a larger 10" x 10" canvas.  I'm using the design for the postcards advertising my Zentangle classes.  I'm so excited!

original tile

Class Engaged!

Today, I had the honor and pleasure to be invited to give a Zentangle lesson at a local elementary school by a friend and neighbor who teaches there.  She had taken my very first Zentangle class a few weeks ago and wanted to share it with her fifth graders.  This was the perfect time, as school is winding down and kids are getting antsy to be indoors.

And it went wonderfully well.


I gave them each a kit with tiles, a pen, pencil, and a special Zentangle bookmark.  And then I began drawing on my easel.

We started with the word "Zentangle"--a combination of Zen (which refers to Japanese meditation--I didn't mention Buddhism) and art, or a tangle of lines.  Zentangle drawing is an art in which you can elicit meditative feelings of calm and focus by creating repetitive patterns in beautiful works of art.

I started with some questions:
Have you ever felt angry, sad, scared, nervous, tired, bored, frustrated?  How did your body feel when you felt those emotions?  How is it different when you are happy or satisfied or excited?  I told them that meditation was a way to transcend some of those emotions, especially the negative ones, a way to rest and calm their bodies and minds--by using their breath!  Everyone breathes, you can do it anywhere, without any supplies, like when you're tired of waiting in line or scared to go into the doctor's office.  And so we tried a short breath meditation--in through your nose, out through your mouth.  Feel the change in temperature, the breath over your lips, the rise and fall of your chest.  A few of them giggled, some huffed and snorted and sighed, but they tried it for several moments.   I tried to stay away from cliches like "being grounded" and "center yourself."

And then we started.  They pulled out their kits, with the tiles, pen, pencil, and bookmark.   I worked through the steps at my post-it flip pad and easel (with big black marker and gray shading marker)--gratitude and appreciation, corner dots, border, string, tangle shade, initial and sign, and appreciate again--while they followed along on their tiles.  We did a pretty typical first tile--z-shaped tile with basic strings crescent moon, hollibaugh, florz, and printemps.  I told them about a lot of variations (which only make sense if you know Zentangle)--drawing squiggles or loops in their borders, putting dots between auras in crescent moon, shading the spaces behind the lines in hollibaugh, shading the lines of hollibaugh, putting dots in the spaces behind the lines of hollibaugh, drawing printemps or crescent moons in the spaces of hollibaugh, putting other shapes at the intersections of florz, making big and little spirals in printemps, connecting the lines of hollibaugh to the lines of florz, putting a few printemps in the spaces of hollibaugh or florz.  Several of the kids gave the variations a try.  It's a lot like the first tile I ever did in my own first Zentangle class last year on retreat.  While they drew, I kept a somewhat constant Zentangle narrative going, while I walked around the room:

• If they can write "iSCO," they can do most of the strokes in Zentangle patterns
• No eraser = no mistakes (but, just in case, I pretended to mess up and then showed them Bronx Cheer to cover it  up)
• What does a "hollibaugh" really look like?  Nobody knows!  There is no right or real in Zentangle.    The names are non-descriptive, just a way to give us a shorthand for talking about the art and to each other
• Shade as part of the design (not trying to create consistent internal light source)
• Look at tile at arm's length
• Turn it around to look at it from several angles--no right side up!
• Go your own pace
• Everyone is different so make it your own
• Go back to your breath meditation if you get frustrated
• Borders are made to be crossed
• Lines don't have to be straight 

While they finished up their first tile and placed it on my tablecloth for the class mosaic, I  showed them the Apprentice video chapter 6 of Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas talking about how they were inspired to create the steps of Zentangle.  I then explained that Maria and Rick didn't invent patterns (those are everywhere--in nature and human-made items), that they came up with the list of steps to access meditation through art.  We looked at the class mosaic and saw how the tiles were all different, all creative and all individual--with same instructions!  Then I distributed Apprentice letter to parents and announced that they were all Zentangle Apprentices.  Harkening back to the beginning, I asked them how they felt now.  "Good," they yelled.  I told them they could tap into this feeling, creativity, and beauty whenever they needed or wanted to.

      

I was there about an hour and they were so focused, curious, and excited.  I even gave them two extra tangles (zander and pokeroot) because they wanted to learn more, even though I had to rush them.  I pointed to the tangled border of their Apprentice letter to parents and said there were so many patterns--they could even make up some!  (If they'd name them after me.)

I was surprised with how hesitant they already were at 10 - 11 years old to make a mistake; most of them admitted being very hesitant when looking at a blank piece of paper and asked to create something.  But once we got the dots, borders, and strings on the tiles, they settled in.  Still, at each step, they wanted reassurance that they weren't "wrong" and that their designs were "good."  Both the teacher and I kept reiterating that there were no mistakes, that they made the creative choices, that different was okay.  Even still, at the end, a couple of students wouldn't join their tiles to the mosaic. 

But they begged the teacher to do more Zentangle patterns.  I left the Apprentice DVD with the teacher and two extra tiles for each kid (plus some extra pens in case some broke.)  I told them they could look up Zentangle online and find all kinds of patterns, that they could make greeting cards or pencil cases or whatever they wanted.  The teacher said it was the most focused her class had ever been all year.

Maybe next year, we should offer the lesson in the beginning of the year, and then the teacher can introduce new tangles as they go and the students can add them to projects at Valentine's Day or Mother's Day; they can tangle when they are anxious about a test or done with their work.  I know I would have loved it when I was a student, just like these kids did.  Just like I love it now.

Prepping

My first official Zentangle class is tomorrow night and I've been prepping for a few days now.  In some ways, it's not quite "official," in that I've invited some interested friends over who I know will be supportive and encouraging.  My first class with fully-paying strangers will be a different ballgame altogether.  Still there's a lot to be done--materials to prep, class outline to finalize, food to make--and I am structuring it like a regular class.

And on top of it, I'm simultaneously interpreting it in ASL for my Deaf friend tomorrow night!  Which reminds me that I need to look up the sign for "shading" and "outline."  I had already posted on the Certified Zentangle Teacher forum a question about the sign commonly used for "Zentangle."  Two responses came back:  a "Z" signed with the dominant hand in the "L" space of the other hand (like drawing on a tile) and a "T"-hand signing a "Z" in the air (for Zen and Tangle.)

I'm really very excited and have been practicing my own tangles and tiles to get ready.   (Below is the frame I made for signs, etc.) The kids are excited, too, and have begged to help.  They're both going to come towards the end and teach their favorite patterns.

Wish me luck!

Some of my favorite tangles, including (clockwise from left corner): shattuck, hollibaugh, florz, knase variation
pokeleaf, bannah, nipa, mooka, printemps, Zenplosion folds, paradox, bales, curly-q, w2, cadent, chainging, munchin
flukes, flux.

Tangling Together

We'll remember this as the Zentangle spring break.

Yesterday, I did an informal mini-class with the kiddos, using both the Apprentice video and the video in the basic kit, and we came up with a nice mosaic (several tiles together--yes, there's a lot of lingo.)    Hermione the cat appreciates the use of black and white.

Bud struck out on his own and has been making several tiles everyday.  He likes the student-friendly Sakura pigma pen, with the plastic tip--it's a slightly thicker line and an indestructible pen.

I've been doing a tile-a-day myself, experimenting with shading and new tangle patterns (below, in approximate order.)  

We decorated the driveway yesterday, as I mentioned, and today?  Well, we'll either do tiny Bijou tiles or start our own family Zendala mosaic.  We'll see.

-=-=-=-
UPDATE:  We started!

I'm a New CZT#22 (and it rhymes!)

Wow, what a week!  On Saturday, I headed to Providence for Certified Zentangle Teacher (CZT) training.  As you know, I went to a Zentangle retreat a year ago and really began a regular art practice (most of which is just in my sketchbook.)  I realized I could learn more techniques and improve my skills by taking the official course with founders Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas; I only vaguely thought of teaching regularly.  It was more for personal edification because I really enjoy it.  So when the course offerings for the year were listed, I signed up.

Oops, upside down.  Or proof that there really isn't an upside down!

And it was wonderful.  Now, in the very beginning of the course, we agree not to share any details so as to keep the surprises for the next class of CZTs.  See, Zentangle is copyrighted, trademarked, and even patent pending; it's a business.  So, I will speak about my specific skills but none of the teaching activities, class materials/supplies/etc., or neat touches.  (I will say you will lack for nothing during the course either in the way of accommodations/meals or the class itself, and that, if you are tempted to go and can manage, definitely try to.)



For those of you who don't remember my talking about Zentangle, it's a fun and easy-to-learn method for creating beautiful artworks by drawing repeating and structured patterns (I paraphrase from various Zentangle materials.)  It's really all about encouraging people, particularly adults, who don't believe they can be creative or artistic, to give drawing a try without the pressure to create realistic or representational pictures.  As we say, there are no mistakes here.  The method--with its dots and border and strings and patterns (Tangles) and tiles (little square projects)--helps people avoid anxiety and being overwhelmed by choice by giving them clear and simple steps to follow.  If you can make an "I," "S," "C," and "O," you can do this.  Just ask my mom.  She isn't usually handy and doesn't particularly enjoy making any crafts, but she took to Zentangle when she visited last year and was surprised at the beauty and creativity of her tiles--she's really good and has the hang of it.  It was really touching to see her joy and pride (and we are going to have such fun when we go to Kripalu to take a Zentangle class together!)   And I was pretty much the same way.  After 15 years of academic art history, I would have said I couldn't draw; now, I have changed my perspective.  I especially like the combination of art and mindfulness, the way you enter flow, to borrow a term from Mihaly Csikszentmihaly.  Zentangle couples well with my meditation practice, especially on the days I just can't sit.  Think of it all as one step beyond all those lovely adult coloring books.

So, keeping CZT training itself a secret, I will mention the improvement of my own practice:

• The biggest technique for me was shading.  I was never much of a shader.  I hesitated to rub gray pencil on everything, especially since there was no internal light source in the piece, it being non-representational.  But if I think of shading as part of the pattern . . . .well, it makes all of the difference!  
• I also really started turning my tiles as I drew so that I always worked circles and spirals counter-clockwise and drew lines towards me, not away.  By moving the tile around and not my hand position, I am able to keep a steadier, smoother line.  I still work way too fast.  But I'm slowing down.
• I feel like my composition also has better flow--I can follow or ignore borders and have a better handle on which patterns flow into others seamlessly.  My tiles look more like organic wholes than a bunch of different Tangles together. 

But the best part was the people!  I know, cliche.  But it was true.  I sat in the very back with three other wonderful women who encouraged and inspired each other.  We came to call ourselves the "Back-Row Brigade."   I would get ideas from their tiles and (hopefully) vice versa.  It was nice to have a little cohort, making the 110-member class a little less daunting.  I'd say the class was mostly women (except maybe 3 men), mostly older middle age (with grown children), mostly from the US but also from 14 other countries including China, Taiwan, South Africa, England, Germany, Switzerland.  There were several Texans and even another woman from Connecticut who attended the Zentangle retreat last year (though we didn't really remember each other.)  I'd say I got to know about 10-15 other students during our meals and breaks and evenings.  I look forward to keeping in touch with them, made so much easier with email and Facebook.  

And so now what?  Many of my friends have commented very kindly and supportively about my tiles and training on FB and some have even asked about taking a Zentangle lesson.  And so, I probably will teach a few local classes--at the library, maybe through church, and probably mostly at informal house parties.  For myself, I'm drawing a tile a day, a little creative meditation to start my morning. . . . and to remember my wonderful week in Providence.

Another Small Step

So, you know I like to doodle and draw, using the Zentangle method.  I've drawn on flags and porcelain statuettes, book bags and pillows, and filled sketchbooks and "tiles."   I started on my own, having seen some drawings on Pinterest, and then took a three-day workshop/retreat in February, which I loved.  I've introduced it to the kids, Gommie, and my Girl Scout troop.

And now for the next step:  I'm going to become a Certified Zentangle Teacher!  I'm so excited.  It's a four-day intensive, like a mega-retreat, in nearby Providence.  It's very pricey, but I think it will be worth it in the long run.

Why, you ask?  To further my practice.  To expand my opportunities to use it with hospice patients, their caregivers, and other hospice workers.  To teach it at the local community center and churches.  In fact, I've already been asked to present it at a workshop of hospice volunteers.  The "certified" part also gets me--besides intensive training--discounts and networking.

Isn't it somewhat ironic, art historian turned artist?