Art Journal - Tangled

Last week I stumbled on a meditative doodling practice which is very popular (yet some how I missed this one until now) called Zen.tangle. This is a deceptively easy process that is very similar to my own doodles that fill the margins of notebooks and papers going back to high school. It is also called Zen.doodling, tangling and the finished products can be quite striking. Basically you create a guide structure (usually a 3.5" x 3.5" square) filled with "strings" or dividing guidelines that are filled with patterns. It is relaxing, keeps your hands busy, and provides a repetition akin to meditating.

Above is a doodle I started in my small (7" x 7") sketch book when I was waiting somewhere...either waiting to pick up my hubby at the train station or in a doctors waiting area. Either way I was pregnant.

All I had completed at that time was the pod like shapes with the interconnected tubing. When I was flipping back through my sketch book I realized I had a good start on a tangle before I even knew what that meant. So I filled the spaces in between with patterns and this is the finished project. This one took about 2-3 hours to finish but the smaller ones I have finished in under an hour. Since Friday I have created probably 8 tangles...I am hooked.

Art therapy is a powerful thing...and I definitely feel more calm and relaxed after creating a tangle.