You Don't Have To Stay In Your Lane

So many artist activities are filling my days I'm happy to say.  Having wrapped up Louise Fletcher's "Momentum" course, I've joined her Art Tribe.  This is a website that is part library of how to do all things art and it's also a community of artists who collaborate and support each other.  As someone who never had the luxury of a lot of time for indulging in making art, I have so much I want to learn now that I'm retired.  Different mediums, techniques, products, ways of displaying and sharing... I'm digging into everything.  

As shared in this blog over the years, I started with watercolor painting and did that exclusively for years, mainly painting realistic paintings.  In the past year I was introduced to acrylic painting and gained an appreciation for abstract art.  Over the past month I've started exploring soft pastels.  I dabbled with them here and there during my watercolor years and knew I enjoyed drawing with them.  Now I'm pulling out some of the prettiest photos I've taken of gardens and making representations of them in pastel.  The vibrant colors of soft pastels are so suited to this!  Here is one of my first works:  some orchid primroses I saw at Butchart Gardens in Vancouver British Columbia.  Next steps for this will be to frame it and display it out in public as well as make prints available at annewoods.art.

I'm learning about the different grades of pastels and name brands other artists use and why they choose them.  I've learned about sanded paper for the first time.  This special paper has "tooth" which allows the artist to apply more layers of pastel.  Underpainting the darks first is a technique I'd never done in the past with pastels and it's such a smart way to approach a painting.  And painting with soft pastels and rubbing alcohol... that's a thing too!  Who knew?  Such fun!  

My personal view, at least at this stage in my artist life, is that we do whatever we want... there are no rules for staying in one lane as far as I'm concerned!  If we have curious and adventurous minds about various art forms and styles, explore it all.  The key is to make art that makes us happy.  If we are expressing what we are interested in, others will see it and feel it too.  

A final note about new endeavors this month:  I am working on a mind map to document themes that are important to me which would be good to express in my art.  It's yet another Louise Fletcher exercise designed to help her students make meaningful art and never run out of inspiration for what to make next.  The mind mapping requires time for quiet introspection about life experiences, feelings and viewpoints.  Day by day I add more to it.  Inspiration will come regarding how it will translate into the art I make going forward.  Stay tuned.  It's gonna be good! 

Branching Out With Art

This past month has brought new opportunities for connecting with local artists.  The Foothills Art Association and gallery in La Mesa asked if I'd like to help increase their social media outreach.  It's a happy thing to reach new people interested in art so I've been making and posting videos to Instagram and Facebook.  They show artwork, artists and activities in and around the gallery.  We hope to increase the awareness of what the gallery offers.  For instance,  members enjoy various demos, hands-on art classes and group painting and drawing sessions.  And once a month the art show in the gallery changes over to a new theme with a new featured artist.  The Foothills Friday reception is the show's official opening, an evening that fills the gallery with creative energy.  Here's a quick peek video! 

This is the painting I have hanging in the gallery for the June show.  It's Borrego Springs during the wildflower bloom.  Borrego Springs was one of the first playgrounds I discovered when I moved to San Diego in the 1980s so the painting holds memories of camping and dirt bike riding with good friends over the years.

I'm also winding down a six-month art course called Momentum, led by artist Louise Fletcher.  Her many art students were surprised to learn from her this week that she is retiring from teaching to focus on her own art making.  Louise touched so many of our lives with her personality, her way of conveying her knowledge and her talent for assembling a compassionate group of art coaches to assist us.  That team has helped me discover so many new ways of expressing myself through art.  It's actually quite an emotional gift and I've seen that sentiment shared by many other artists.

Fortunately I've also joined Louise's "Art Tribe" comprised of over 4000 artists who have been her students.  It's a wonderful online gathering place and art knowledge repository.  So the learning and the support will continue as Louise hands off the running of that resource to Trayci, a capable and special member of the group.  

During our farewells and thank you's to Louise many personal stories of the importance of art making have been shared.  Some of her students have spoken of navigating the death of a spouse or partner during the art course, finding the learning and expressing in art mediums helped them grieve.  Others have spoken of long careers consuming their time and leaving no time for finding out if they could even be artists.  With Louise they made the happy discovery that yes, they are artists too.  Some have shared the impact of how they were raised or even where they were in their family birth order which caused them to be quite hard on themselves or perfectionist "rule-followers" or never learning to truly play.  Through this art journey they've launched into new freedom to be themselves.  They've learned to express without fear.  It's been so powerful to see what the right teacher and art itself can do for people.

I painted this as a thank you and tribute to Louise Fletcher.  Many aspects of it are what she alone has taught me.  For one thing, I learned to appreciate abstract art!  This piece has many layers.  It has been perhaps 5 different paintings, evolving over time.  It was painted with tools I never knew I could use until Louise showed me to not be confined to a brush.  It's on the largest canvas I've used so far:  24 inches by 36 inches. This is a goal I set for myself as part of my current Creative Brief.  The Creative Brief is yet another tool Louise taught her students to use to keep on track with focus and purpose.  

This is an intuitive expressive painting about gratitude and joy.  I've titled it simply "For Louise".  

The Momentum To Connect

As part of what I'm doing with my painting the past month I've written a creative brief.  It's a roadmap for where my experiments in creating are going.   It's a definition for how I'll know I've succeeded at any of them.  The project focus is to convey the feelings of gratitude that I've had when I'm taking in the beauty outdoors around my home and in my travels.  Added inspiration is coming from poetry that emotes the feelings for the painted scenes.   I have seven or eight studies on paper right now and they will lead to some larger work on canvas.  

This has been a month of discovering ways of connecting my art with other people.  I was so pleased to join my community gallery, The Foothills Art Association.  The gallery accepted three of my paintings which are on display this month.  I am meeting wonderful local artists since joining.  It's so nice to see everyone's art and be around all of that creative energy and knowledge.  If you're in La Mesa California treat yourself to a visit, meet an artist and enjoy the creativity.  Here is their website that also contains a unique digital art exhibition online!   Foothills Art Association Website

At the Foothills Art Association Gallery With My Painting "Complements".

 

There is now a website, annewoods.art, where people anywhere can view and purchase my art.  It contains some select pieces from my earlier work in watercolor and Zentangle as well as my current work with acrylic and mixed media.  Please visit my website, have a look and be sure to leave a comment!   Click the middle arrow below for a slideshow preview:

Expressions

 For the past few months I have been immersed in a wonderful Louise Fletcher art course called "Momentum".  It's an exploration of ways to express myself in art.  It's also a framework for identifying what I want to say artistically.  When the learning is applied, "Momentum" is just that... the ability to keep inspiration going so art continues to flow with meaning. 

My current focus involves the beauty I see in nature at home and during my camping travels.  Many times it's the light in the sky or the way the area around me is lit that fills me with gratitude.  For example, this is what I see many nights as I walk in my La Mesa neighborhood.  I just had to capture it in my art and share with others.

No clutter of manmade things... just pure nature in the painting

Learning New Art Mediums

 To this point in my life I have been a watercolor artist who paints realistic paintings and I have learned pen and ink pattern art known as Zentangle.  As mentioned in previous posts, there has been an ebb and flow to my art-making.  Other aspects of life can crowd in and take me away from the joy of creating art.

Recently I discovered a course named "Find Your Joy".  It's a three-month online course focused on ways of making art that are entirely new to me:  acrylic paint and abstract painting.  After taking a free introductory mini-course called "Creative Reset", offered by the same teacher named Louise Fletcher, I was intrigued.  We are now coming to the end of the three months of weekly lessons and all that I've learned has once again made art a part of my daily life.  

Much of the course had to do with uncovering the blocks to being an artist.  Why do we want to make art at all?  What are our expectations and who are we making it for, ourselves or in the hope of getting approval from others?  What do we like and love?  How do we make sure we use our art to express our own feelings and do what we truly love?  What is the difference between an artist and a craftsman?  There is a difference and I personally prefer to be an artist.

Many fellow artists who have been in this course are feeling a bit sad that we have gotten to the end of the teaching.  It's been personal and so reinforcing.  Some of the surprising things I've learned in it are:

• acrylic paintings are easier for me to adjust and make corrections to than watercolor paintings
• treating each painting project as a "study" and not a painting takes the pressure off to "be good" and then fun exploration can happen
• good artists fail a lot and don't take it personally because it's how we come to make art we love
• I can paint with any tool and not just the brushy end of a brush (I hadn't finger painted since kindergarten until this course!)
• I love making abstract art and have gained an appreciation for how much thought and skill goes into it

Looking forward to sharing many more art creations that will emerge from this new learning and refreshed enthusiasm.  Making art transports us away from the less positive parts of daily living and elevates us!

My "Find Your Joy" art studies

What Do You Do When Overwhelmed or Depleted?

Most artists have experienced periods when they find it difficult to make art.  Lack of ideas, too many ideas, comparing one's talents and art outcomes with other artists, a perceived dearth of energy... all of these reasons and more can stop an artist from creating.

Recently I found myself not creating or teaching.  I simply became overwhelmed with all the possibilities with Zentangle art.  Looking at what other artists are creating, it became difficult to know what to draw or teach next.  

My personal preference is for classic Zentangle:  abstract compositions in monotone shades.  Maria Thomas, founder of Zentangle Inc., suggested that all we need is to keep the art simple and beautiful.  The fewer the choices an artist has to make, the more easily they can create.  But the internet is filled with artists creating pictures and shapes and filling them with bright colors.  Should I be learning and teaching that since it appears to be so popular?  While pondering this, I set aside my pens and paper altogether.

This roadblock was cleared when I reached out to a fellow teacher who was in my Certified Zentangle Teachers (CZT) class years ago.  I asked her if our teacher group was still meeting remotely and doing art together.  She connected me up with a wonderful group of CZTs in a group called "Zen Gulf Cafe".  With continuous ongoing weekly projects, the Zen Gulf Cafe teachers take turns teaching one another.  

Very quickly, I was encouraged to teach the group as well.  Again, I hesitated.  I have taught introduction classes to people who have never made Zentangle art before.  I have ongoing students who are developing their skills.  But to teach other certified teachers?  This seemed daunting, especially when I felt confused about art project ideas in general.  But the leader of the group, a woman from India named Dolly, sweetly but persistently asked me.  When I expressed my concerns, she scheduled a call with me.  As we talked, I listened to her gentle lilting voice reassuring me that any design I chose to teach would be appreciated by the group.  

She was right.  I chose a simple repetitive design from Zentangle Project Pack 7.  Once I demonstrated the simple shapes once or twice, there was no need for me to speak much.  The group became absorbed in silence as they got "into the zone".  After the session the comments flooded in:  "I loved this session!"  "So meditative and relaxing!"  Each artist chose their own ink colors, each selected unique shape sizes and combinations.  All the art was gorgeous and different.  Each composition complemented the others.  

Now I'm back to regular art creation and teaching.  If you have a block, reach out to other artists.  Come together with them to support and inspire.  Trust yourself to be able to flow again.

Teaching in Zen Gulf Cafe

Same set of instructions yet look at this sampling of such varied outcomes...

Other recent creations I've done with the support of the Zen Gulf Cafe CZTs and the sessions they taught:

Delicate lace effect of white on black

Dramatic dimensionality topped with lace

Zendala pre-colored with Lindy's Magicals

A meditative appreciation of the layers and gifts in this world

Shading and Highlighting

One of my favorite things to share with Zentangle students is shading and highlighting the tangles.  Creating the tangles is relaxing and inspiring.  There are endless designs we can lay down on paper with pen and ink, focusing on one pen stroke at a time.  But the amazing tangles can inspire wonder when they become three dimensional with shading.  We use graphite pencil and then blend the graphite with a paper tortillon to create the illusion of depth and shadows.  Then we finish off the effect with white charcoal to add light and height to contrast with the graphite shadows.

In addition to the variety in tangles, we use white tiles, tan, grey, black or we can create a colorful background and tangle on top of that.   Whether creating art with others or doing it on my own in the garden or on my couch with a drawing board in my lap, I always find Zentangle relaxing.  

 

  

Back In The Business of Sharing Peace and Joy Through Art

 My last blog post was way back in 2020.  I can hardly believe it.  But then again, the whole world was forced to go on "pause" for too long a time.  It wasn't until April 2022 that I scheduled and taught another Zentangle class.  The moment a couple of my previous students returned to my home I was so happy.  We exchanged smiles and hugs and set about making happy little Zentangle ornaments.  This ornament idea was an inspiration from Barbara Langston, one of my CZT classmates.  She is a wonderful Zentangle instructor with her own YouTube channel called "Not Perfect Zen".  

For our ornaments we used Lindy's Magicals to color our paper tiles and then we tangled over the top and shaded and highlighted.

Next we folded our tiles while sending a string and an attached bell through the center of the ornament.  We glued the folds and created a lovely shiny coating using Mod Podge.  

In the following weeks I offered several Zentangle classes focused on creating a 7"x 7" piece known as an Opus tile.  At each session students were taught five new tangle patterns.  Week by week the art piece emerged.  Now normally I will complete an Opus within a session or two, using the patterns that come to mind and then repeating them with slight variations.  But I noticed my student Trisha had come for about four sessions and hadn't completed one Opus.  I asked her when she was going to finish one and her answer was interesting.  She said, "I love what I've been able to do so far and I don't want to ruin it by trying to add the final patterns."  

This is a common stumbling block for many artists.  This fear of failure can hold artists back from starting and it can also hold some back from completing a work.  

We talked it through, bringing to mind that nothing Trisha had done thus far had been ruinous AND it was only a piece of paper.  I had given her fresh Opus tiles each session so she had plenty more to play with.  

The result of our conversation was that Trisha went home and indeed completed her Opus piece.  In fact, she told me her drawing time put her in a peaceful "zone" that allowed four hours to go by without her noticing.  

She proudly sent me a photo of what she had done and said, "I tried as hard as I could to ruin this tile but it didn't get ruined!!  I think it's a breakthrough.  I'm so happy."  I think anyone would agree, Trisha created some wonderful art here:

We have also been creating art booklets which are filled with inspiring quotations designed to support anyone delving into art.  Originally designed for Mental Health Awareness Month (May), special patterns were suggested for each page by the founders of Zentangle.  Step-by-step instructions for each page are found on the Zentangle YouTube channel.  There is something wonderful though about gathering in person and stepping through the pages together.

Here are some pages my students and I have completed so far.  I love seeing the different stylings and interpretations when we lay our work out in mosaic form.

Anyone local to San Diego can participate in any upcoming class by going to the Meetup.com and joining my group called Zentangle With Annie.  Those who aren't local can still join the group to see the activities our group does.  Here's a link to click to join!  Zentangle With Annie Meetup Group

Although Zentangle has proven to be an easy and relaxing art form, I recently decided I'd been way too dormant with my watercolor painting.   I certainly didn't want to be in an "if you don't use it you'll lose it" situation with painting.  But unlike Zentangle, whenever I approach painting there's always a hesitance or even a fear that I will mess up and the painting won't turn out.  There are so many elements to consider... getting the right ratio of water to pigment to get the tones and vibrance right, the amount of water to put on the paper and how long to let it soak in before applying paint, working fast enough so areas of the painting don't dry, etc.  

What's helped with that in the past was checking in with the Watercolor Workshop group.   I first found this group about 12 years ago on Yahoo.  Today they exist on MeWe.   What I love about this group is that they exist to paint given projects each month which the artists share by posting.   I've received inspiration and encouragement from this group.   And if you seek tips or feedback on techniques the artists are kind and provide that too upon request. 

As I approached getting started with a painting in August of this year, the Watercolor Workshop group provided yet another helpful suggestion.   Lynn Bauer of Dragonfly Spirit on YouTube has several videos on painting on postcard-sized watercolor paper.   What a great idea!   After all, if I mess up the painting it's just a postcard!   I can easily start over with another little square of paper.   My brother was born in August of 1963 and he died in August of 2016.   So I wanted to try a little watercolor featuring him. There's a photograph that was taken when he was working as a caregiver for a client who had Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS).   The client wanted to go on a cruise.   He snapped a photo of my brother standing on the deck of the ship.   I thought it just might work out as a silhouette painting.   With Lynn's techniques it worked out great.

Brother Bill

As September rolled around the monthly project for the Watercolor Workshop group was to paint snow. We only have white snow when we preserve and don't paint over the white watercolor paper so it's a challenge similar to negative painting.   Everything else but the snow gets paint.   I went back to YouTube and found a snowy mountain painting session I could follow.

Snowy Peak

In art it's wonderful to have support systems, sources of information and inspiration.  And it's not only a joyful thing when paintings work out but when others enjoy looking at it.  Keep on painting!  Keeping on drawing!

Passing the Zen On

The past few months have brought a temporary halt to hosting Zentangle classes in my home.  The last one I'd scheduled was on March 16th.  But that afternoon the county health director announced there were to be no nonessential gatherings of any size due to COVID19 concerns.  

I'd been excited to share the new Moonlight Gelly Roll pens with my student Trisha that night.  Such beautiful colors!  Since she was excited to draw with them, Trisha decided she should come by my house and take the pens home with her.

Trisha's enthusiasm for learning Zentangle art comes from years of feeling like her artistic instincts were suppressed.  She had been put into kindergarten at the age of 4 and while she was smart enough to keep up academically, her motor skills lagged a bit behind her older classmates.  Comparing her art to theirs made her feel like she wasn't good enough.  And she believed that throughout her life even though she wanted to create and express herself in art.  

When we met she loved every tangle we created together.  At the end of each session she left with a big smile on her face and her beautiful art pieces in her hands.  For the past three months she's been drawing new art and sending it to me.  She's used the classic black ink on white tile method and practiced shadowing with graphite.  She created this amazing 3D effect in her work with a Paradox monotangle.

Trisha's Paradox Monotangle

Keeping with the Paradox monotangle she took off with her Moonlight Gelly Rolls on a black tile to achieve this effect:

Trisha's Moonlight Paradox Tangle

Here's yet another tangle combination in which she added shadowing on all the edges of her circles, making them look like little pillows.  

Trisha's Open Circles

She then texted me and asked if I thought she should tangle inside the circles.  I encouraged her to experiment and practice.  She agreed and remarked, "You're right!  It's just a little piece of paper!"  Her artwork transformed completely!

Trisha's Transformed Art

Over the course of two weeks Trisha sent me 19 works of art that she had created on her own at home!  I asked her what motivates her to tangle so much.  She said "I just always feel the need to create and Zentangle gives me joy and relaxation."  

As a Zentangle instructor that made me feel so good to hear because I know I've done my job.  I've passed on the ability to access joy and relaxation when creating art.  Mission accomplished!  That's what Zentangle is all about.  And what a wonderful gift when a teacher receives inspiration and motivation from her student.  

Thanks Trisha!

Going Opus

When teaching Zentangle classes we most often use paper tiles that measure 3.5 x 3.5 inches.  There are a couple of reasons for this.  First, it allows people to draw a variety of patterns but complete a work of art in under an hour.  Usually in my classes I send my students home with two completed tiles and that sense of accomplishment.  Secondly, a smaller tile is so easy to turn and move to and fro while executing one stroke at a time.  

Now I happened to learn Zentangle on a much larger paper tile, the Opus size.  It measures 10.5 x 10.5 inches.  The exciting thing about this size is that when it is finished it is always a framable work of art.  It's worthy of gifting, selling or simply hanging and enjoying in your home.  There's plenty of space to spread out and make large, free patterns or many smaller patterns.  So I have started offering Opus classes to my students once they've completed an Intro to Zentangle class.  My first Opus students got off to a great start as you can see.

Opus Tile Class

I find tangling so relaxing that I'm always working on a new Opus myself.  Here are a couple I completed last month.

Monochrome

Opus Blue

Art Therapy?

The month of October has seen my Zentangle classes take off.  I've done one-on-one sessions as well as group classes.  People are pleased with their art as well as the process of creating it.  However, I've noticed that there is sometimes more going on than people having a playful drawing session.  Some students put themselves down.  My role is to gently encourage them that perfection is not the goal with this art.  Lines are not to be perfectly straight.  Curves don't have to be perfectly symmetrical and round.  A misplaced line or curve is not a mistake... it gets transformed into the sum total of an intriguing nonrepresentational work of art.

As a new art teacher I have sometimes been surprised at the self-doubt and self-criticism of some students.  And in those moments I can see a fragile person who perhaps is very demanding of himself/herself in day-to-day life.  My art sessions may be rare moments when that person hears and is shown that he or she is fully-capable... there is no possible way to fail.  Sometimes it's hard to convince them that they're not failing in that moment... it's a new activity, a new artform for most.  So their frustration and negative self-talk flows out.  I've found that it's up to me to field those responses and without being fake, encourage the artists to be patient with themselves and trust the process.  My job is to remind the artists to BREATHE as they draw... and focus on making one stroke at a time.  When the entire art piece is completed and shaded, there is satisfaction and even pride.  Quite often students have shared that they caught themselves smiling as they got into that focused drawing.  Others finish the session with the words, "I'm hooked on this!"

Recently I was a bit too ambitious in thinking I could teach a large class how to execute the super-cool basketweave pattern called Huggins.  My first verbal instruction was to draw a nice matrix of small circles.  Before I knew it, some students had drawn tiny circles all over the place with barely any spacing.  There was no way to connect them properly to form the basketweave pattern.  So I simply suggested to those students that they continue to fill that space with circles, large and small.  Huggins became Tipple and all were happy with the effect.  No mistakes! 

What I love most about teaching Zentangle is the happiness it brings my students.  I love the smiles as they admire their art at the end of the session.  I love their sense of pride and accomplishment and discovery.  I'm gratified when students carry some of the relaxation ideas from the art session into their daily life.  

Some of My Students This Month

My First Official Zentangle Classes!

October has been an exciting month!  I set a teaching schedule and advertised it and students signed up!  There were three who came to my first class on October 3rd.  I gave them the history of Zentangle and why the art method works for so many people.  Soon we were putting pen to paper.  The artists did four and in one case five tangles on their tiles.  They came together so beautifully!  Crescent Moon, Hollibaugh, Print Temps, Florz and Flux.  We added shadowing to each tangle and they really popped!  The artists were all rightfully pleased with their work and finished the session with big smiles on their faces.  

Happily, all three of my first students have made plans to return for more art instruction. One came the very next week, joining with a new student.  So this time we played with different tangles than we used at the first class.  The ladies had such fun with Poke Root that it made them giggle with happiness as they looked at what they'd drawn.  Then we added some Poke Leaf, Paradox, Diva Dance, 'Nzeppel and some Zinger for good measure! As a teacher, I loved those quiet moments when the artists were watching their patterns emerge.  I'd hear sounds like, "Oh!" and "Wow!" and "I love this!"  As one of the students said, "I'm hooked!"

Training in Providence Rhode Island to Become a CZT

What a marvelous experience it was to go to Providence to learn Zentangle teaching techniques from Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, the creators of the method.  I joined with 150 other enthusiastic artists from 40 countries for 3 days of nonstop drawing.  We couldn't get enough!

We were in a gorgeous ballroom in The Graduate, a Sheraton hotel built in 1921.  The entire hotel was filled with art inspiration.  Patterns were everywhere!

Each tangled tile that we created was placed in a basket on our way out to our breaks and  by the time we went out for a subsequent break, they were hung in a beautiful mosaic.  Seeing each individual tile become part of a larger whole stunned us all with how gorgeous it all was.  Every person's interpretation of an assignment was unique.  Combined with all the others... well it all just fit in such a lovely way.

As new CZTs we came away from Providence not only knowing how to teach the techniques of drawing, but also the calming and peaceful thoughts that come with the Zentangle philosophy.  "No mistakes"... there's nothing to fear in doing art.  "One stroke at a time"... allowing oneself to slow down in this way not only produces beautiful art results but puts you in a healing and relaxed state.  So much more!  

I left so enthused to share this with everyone.  And now my art teaching journey begins...

I Want to Teach!

It was after my second Zentangle class that I started wanting to show this art to all my family and friends.  They were amazed at what I was creating and wanted to try it too.  My first student was my friend who came to my house for lunch and a leisurely afternoon of drawing.  At first she started reaching for an eraser and a ruler (we are both engineers by training and past occupation).  I told her that a big part of Zentangle is that we work entirely freehand and there's no need for an eraser because there are no mistakes!  It's all part of the freedom of the art.  Any line or curve placed somewhere we hadn't intended is simply an opportunity to see something new and unique emerge!

Here's my friend's first Opus tile.  I think it's amazing!

Next I traveled to my sister Mary's home.  She had mentioned that another teacher at her school had provided a very brief lesson on Zentangle but Mary didn't get it and was a bit frustrated that she couldn't execute a drawing.  So we sat together at her dining room table and drew, one stroke at a time.  When she finished she was so pleased and I told her to sign her art and go show her boyfriend what she'd done.

Here's Mary's first Opus tile!

And then I knew... if I was going to continue teaching I wanted it to be official.  I wanted to be trained by the Zentangle founders and be certified to teach their methods.  Fortunately a CZT seminar was being held a month later in Providence Rhode Island.  I enrolled, bought my plane ticket and wondered excitedly at what was to come... 

My Second Zentangle Class

A week following my first Zentangle session with Linda I went back to her home for a second.  She had a second blank Opus tile waiting for me and about five new patterns to show me.  I was struck by how simple it was to place a dot in each corner and then connect them to form a frame.  Then a freehand string to divide up the drawing space and it was on to the pen and the patterns.  Since the Opus tile was too large to complete in a 90-minute drawing session, I took it home to finish.  I enjoyed the drawing so much that I finished it that evening.  And here it is:

At our next session I was able to try using colored ink along with the black.  And I learned five more patterns as well!  I was delighted with the result...

At this point I knew a couple things.  I knew I had framable art.  And I knew I wanted to teach other people how enjoyable it is to draw this way. I had started showing my sisters and friends what I was doing and they in turn were asking me to show them how.  And my sisters started putting dibs on new drawings I did.  Maura got this Opus-size Zentangle:

And Mary got this one: