[-art, process, tutorial-]

by Nancy S.M. Waldman

Time:
• 10 minutes or less

Materials:
two standard sheets of printing paper torn in fourths
marker, crayon, pen or pencil

Before reading this article, do one drawing each for 8 of the following words. I’ve given you more than 8 in case you prefer not to deal with some of them but, of course, do them all if you like. The drawings must not be representational. No pictures or symbols that represent anything. Stick to abstract lines and shapes of any thickness or type. Think about the word for only a moment and then begin to draw. Make them small, make them quick and don’t think too much.

peace/tranquility
anger
nervous energy
joyful energy
hope
depression
illness
fear
loneliness
femininity
masculinity

Done?
Now here’s another thing for you to do. Take a moment to decide which one of the two shapes seen below should be named “takete” and which one should be “maluma.”

I’ll explain what these shapes represent at the end of the article.

Words dominate our worlds, and even more importantly, our thoughts. We can’t even think about thoughts without using words. This dominance of the word is one reason art, craft, pure design and music are so vital in our lives. We need the balance that wordlessness can provide. Marks—the kind that you used to do your drawings—communicate on a non-verbal level.

This little exercise is meant to increase your awareness and give you the experience of the fact that non-representational marks carry meaning that can be *read* by others.

Below is a series of drawings that roughly correspond to the ones you did. Scroll down and look at each one. Notice the energy or lack of it, the placement, direction and movement of the lines. Think about how it makes you feel or what it reminds you of. Look for similarities between your drawings and mine. Then scroll back through them and try to match them up with the list of words (some of them are used twice).

peace/tranquility, anger, nervous energy, joyful energy, hope, depression, illness, fear, loneliness, femininity, masculinity

Here they are with labels (on top):

anger	loneliness
fear	anger
tranquility	depression
nervous energy	femininity
illness	hope
joyful energy	masculinity

The interesting thing about these simple drawings is that they tend to be so similar between people. Betty Edwards in Drawing on the Artist Within shows many examples of these drawings done in her art classes. They are not all the same—we wouldn’t expect or want that, would we? And, that’s not the point. The point is that they are amazingly communicative.

You might disagree with some of my labels—maybe what I call hope looks more like femininity to you (I was interested that my joyful energy and femininity looked so similar ), or my nervous energy might look like your anger. Come to think of it, my loneliness looks pretty fearful. I trust, though, that you can look at these and at least narrow the choice down to two or three. Sometimes we don’t communicate that explicitly when we’re using words!

If I did these drawings on another day, they would likely be different. If I were feeling especially lonely or fearful or angry, the marks would be even more communicative of that feeling. The fact that my loneliness drawing incorporates a feeling of fear is interesting to me. I probably am fearful of being lonely. That it came out in a drawing that took less than thirty seconds illustrates my point in a way that my words cannot.

I’ll be posting more about what you can do with simple non-representational drawings, but in the meantime, I suggest that you play with lines, marks and the expression of emotions.

In terms of other art that you do, remember these tiny drawings. Placement on the page, the energy and speed with which lines are drawn, the direction of the lines, whether they are straight, sharp, angular, wavy, curvy, upturned—all of these things and more carry information to your viewer. Whether you work in paint or clay, fabric or pencil, make sure that you know what non-verbal message your art is delivering. Harness this information so that you can use it in your work and in viewing other people’s art.

Most of my understanding of R-mind thinking, the meaning of marks and much of the rest of what I’ve come to understand about creativity was informed by the books of Betty Edwards, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain and Drawing on the Artist Within. I consider them essential so do consider looking more closely at them when you get the chance. (I’ll be posting a full review of Drawing on the Artist Within soon.)

So what about takete and maluma, the drawings at the beginning of this article? These nonsense words and two similar drawings were used in an experiment done by Gestalt psychologist, Wolfgang Kohler in 1929. 98% of respondents labelled the angular drawing “takete” and the curved one, maluma. This was strikingly similar across cultures. We can project why this is so (the letters of takete are more angular, the sound is sharper and so on) but it continues to be a fascination that there is this kind of brain universality associated with abstract shapes and sounds when so much of what human beings have trouble with is communication. According to Wikipedia it is known as the Bouba/Kiki Effect

Other posts about Marks:
Mark my Words - a graphic reminder
Making your Mark - essay about self-promotion

[-journaling, art-]

Today the line between journal, sketchbook, memoir, altered books, scrapbooks, and assemblage has blurred. Maybe it’s time to expand your ideas and practices with regard to journaling and see what the possibilities are for you. Here are some thoughts from a favorite contributor, Cynthia Korzekwa and some pages from her books.

words and art by Cynthia Korzekwa

The Greeks invented the hypomnemata, a notebook used as a material support for memory. The Japanese invented Pillow Books, notebooks kept near the bed to write down observations and annotations. And who hasn’t, at one time or another, kept a diary, a record of personal activities, reflections, or feelings?

Journals, often, have been kept as a foundation for a book to be published and now artists take those published books and alter them. And what about scrapbooks and daybooks? All suggest that the inner self just has to come out and materialize itself.

The sketchbook, once point of departure, is now, often, arrival itself.

This is a cover and two pages from a notebook entitled:

THINKING ABOUT THINGS TO DO

When drawing calligraphic strokes, the inner energy passes through the hand to the brush and then onto the paper. This energy is manifested in the final work. I like writing my thoughts out by hand and not by typing them out onto the computer. Because I like the physical feel of writing. My thoughts are more easily synchronized with the pen as opposed to the keyboard. Does writing by hand as opposed to typing change the way our thoughts are processed?

I have many notebooks that I use to draft out my ideas. Once my ideas are articulated in this way, I transfer them to the computer. Then, once these thoughts are printed and archived, I physically obliterate the written words in my notebooks. The rapid and repetitive motion of my hand moving the pen is like a form of meditation and relaxes me.

Cynthia speaks for herself:
My name is cynthia korzekwa. I was born in Texas. My childhood was greatly influenced by our housekeeper. Her name was Fela. She was from Piedras Negras. I grew up speaking Spanish, eating bean tacos and listening to rancheras. Almost a Mexican. The first drawings I remember doing were done in my mother’s books. I did a series of scribbles in Webster’s dictionary. My mother wasn’t impressed. I think I got into trouble. But I kept drawing anyway. That is until I went to Catholic school. There they had rules about everything. Even about drawing. Stuff like: don’t draw to the margin of the page, don’t go out of the lines, don’t put pink next to red. All those rules made drawing a stress. Then I grew up and realized that those rules weren’t for me. They were for somebody else…..Some people were born to be foreigners. I’m one of them. I can’t be homogenized.
email: cynthiak at tin dot it
websites: cynthia korzekwa, art for housewives

You can see more of cynthia’s book work at: www.cynthiakorzekwa.org/books.htm

Cynthia’s other contributions to The PCQ:
Art Begins at Home
On Colour
See all of The PCQ’s articles on Journaling

Originally published in the January 2006 issue of The Practically Creative Quarterly, theme: alterations

[-inspiration, process-]

by Suze Corte

Inspiration? I am often and easily inspired! What to do with that inspired feeling-how to put it to creative uses-is another matter entirely. As an artist, teacher and creative junkie, I dread the times when something seems to get stuck in my creative machinery, jamming up the works somewhere between inspired concept and output. I have reached the conclusion that I am in desperate need of a mechanic, the grease monkey in charge of tuning up the engine and making it go. I think of this oft-absent spirit as my Studio Muse.

Looking back, it’s obvious that the ability to recognize and experience moments of inspiration emanates from my childhood. My siblings and I were encouraged to be creative thinkers, flexible and open to many possible solutions to problems. Not only were we surrounded with readily available art materials and books, but we also had plenty of time for free play outdoors among the grasses and trees and toads. One of my favorite childhood haunts was a spot up in the branches of an oak tree. There I would follow the seasons of my imagination, communing with the ever-changing leaves enclosing my dreamy perch. Nowadays I realize that I received a priceless gift: carefree time in a beautiful natural setting to get to know myself well. I had the delicious opportunity to reflect, to dream, to imagine, to be engaged, to connect, to plan. As a result, I grew up to be an artist and teacher whose antennae are ever ready to detect tiny tantalizing tidbits of inspiration.

I was fortunate to grow up in a family that supported creative pursuits, honoring books and supplying materials for exploration and discovery. Through the years, my creative outlook has provided me with many successes. I have a healthy marriage to an amazing man. We have an intelligent, creative, beautiful daughter. My home is filled with handmade pillows, drawings, and poems. I have created businesses, taught art classes and preschool, written elegant research papers, and created hundreds of gifts for friends, family and clients. So what am I complaining about?

Well, I’m not complaining. I am sad and frustrated that when I sit down to work, I often feel that my Studio Muse has left the building! I’m wanting more. And because I’ve been wanting more ever since I can remember, I have decided to begin today by actively inviting my Studio Muse to move back in with me on a full-time basis. In the back of my mind is an idea of what my muse looks like, and my plan is to create an actual likeness of her. I know that she will take three-dimensional form, but that’s as specific as I can be right now. I want to manifest her in real form so that she can aid me in moving from my imagination-fantasy-dreaming world into my action-doing-productive mode. I will let you know in the ensuing months as this work-in-progress develops. In the meantime, look over my shoulder as I begin the process of defining, designing and refining the great Studio Muse Experiment!

DEFINING - Top Five Things My Studio Muse Will Be:

• 5. Powerful, wise, beautiful, quirky, encouraging, strong, brave, pushy.
• 4. Capable of evoking laughter and/or tears at just the right times.
• 3. Three-dimensional and multi-faceted.
• 2. Available for late-night consultations.
• 1. Fun.

DESIGNING - Top Five Things My Studio Muse Will Be Designed to Do:

• 5. Take up residence in my life.
• 4. Make her presence known when my attitude toward work is unproductive, resistant, or rebellious.
• 3. Request candle-lighting ceremonies.
• 2. Surround herself with inspiring trinkets.
• 1. Preside over my studio with panache.

REFINING - Top Ten Things My Studio Muse Will Help Me Do:

• 10. Show up regularly.

Practical steps: I will write on my calendar each week specific times when I am going to walk into my studio to work. I will also write down how much time I plan to set aside for each studio session. I’ll leave three reminders around the house, scrawled in crayon and possibly decorated with sequins, saying something like “Show Up! 5:30pm Tuesday!!~signed, Your Studio Muse.”

• 9. Stay for the whole “session.”

Practical steps: If I sit down at my studio table and begin to feel that I have nothing to do, nothing to contribute, nothing to say, so be it. I will still stay for the allotted time. I can push beautiful papers around, rearrange things on the shelves, organize paintbrushes, color-code files, rip fabric, cut funny words out of magazines, scribble on 14 different surfaces, make a list of why I should never come here again, decide how I’m going to destroy all the things I’ve started but never finished, or just sit and listen to music. But I’ll stay.

• 8. Enter with an open heart.

Practical steps: As I open the door and go in, I will look at my Studio Muse and be reminded that this is a place where I can expect to reveal my inner feelings, learn about myself, play, hurt when necessary, rejoice, grow, surprise myself, be surprised by the work.

• 7. Begin lightheartedly.


Practical steps: I will begin a ritual of entering my studio with a song, a dance, and a quirky idea to begin the work. I’ll follow through with the music and the fun idea, and then I’ll go on from there wherever the spirit takes me. I may end up crying by the end of the session, but that will be okay because feeling deeply is an integral part of any creative life.

• 6. Focus on work.

Practical steps: I am in my studio to work. Often creative people seem to work by playing, just as children learn best through play and through their senses. I will remain intentional about being at work/play and if I get off track, I’ll write down three things I’d like to work on. This may be just the trick to get me back to what I’m clearly wanting and needing to do.

• 5. Ignore distractions.

Practical steps: I will be present in the moment and worry about everything else later. I will not answer the phone, do laundry, or watch TV, nor will I be lured to my computer whilst in the studio zone.

• 4. Keep an inspirational journal.

Practical steps: I will create a journal that stays on my studio worktable. Since many items I’ll want to keep will be three-dimensional, i.e., lumpy, I’ll also have an adjunct “journal box” where I can keep a collection of stuff. The journal & box will be lovingly created so that I enjoy looking at them daily. I will deposit ideas, concepts, clippings, bits of nature, drawings, snippets of thoughts, song lyrics, bits of paper, lines from books and movies, quotes, things people have said to me, essays, photos, doodles, techniques I want to try, lists, fabric scraps, threads, cords and strands!

• 3. Be present in the moment.

Practical steps: Through easily accessible sensory clues-a scented candle, good music, nice lighting, comfortable seating, and an evocative Muse right before my eyes-I will attempt to place myself into a state that conjures up my productive, playful, emotional, inspired creative working self.

• 2. Remind me of who I am.

Practical steps: When I enter my workspace and see my personal Muse and Inspiration Journal, I will be visually reminded of who I am and what I want to do. I will know again that It Does Matter and will even remember–on a good day–why it matters!

• 1. Show my work in the world.

Practical steps: I will reveal my work to other people often and without a care as to what they might think. Since my Studio Muse is always there for me, to remind me who I am and to keep me centered, I will feel better about venturing out into the world with my babies-my creative offspring. My worth comes from within my own heart and soul, not from anything or anyone outside of me.

• And the Number One Thing I Hope
  The Studio Muse Experiment Does For You?

INSPIRE!

Originally published in the April 2005 issue of The Practically Creative Quarterly, theme: inspiration
© 2005 - 2007; all rights reserved

About the author:
Suze Corte is a writer, artist and pre-school teacher in Houston, Texas. In 2007, she was chosen as be the Houston Area Association of Educator’s of Young Children’s Teacher of the Year and the Texas Association of Educators of Young Children’s Teacher of the Year. Congratulations, Suze! It is a well-deserved recognition.


To see all of Suze’s PCQ articles and art, click on her name in the tags.

[-journaling-]

by Nancy S. M. Waldman

‘journals’ © 06-07 nancy waldman

Since 1999, when the Journal of the American Medical Association came out with the positive findings of a small study that looked at the therapeutic benefits of writing about one’s feelings, the field of therapeutic writing has spread into all aspects of physical and mental health fields. A quick search of the internet shows oodles of sites and people ready and willing to show other people how to harness the power of journal writing. The studies themselves, in fact, tend to be buried under all these other sites.

It’s difficult, however, to find any evidence - scientific or otherwise - that points to any doubt that writing works on our bodies in a healing way. It’s much more common to find unadulterated proponents such as David Spiegel, MD in the Department of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine, who said, “Were the authors [of the AMA study] to have provided similar outcome evidence about a new drug, it likely would be in widespread use within a short time.”

For writers and experienced journalers, none of this comes as a surprise. But there are all kinds of writing and types of journals. How do we know what works best?

The study done by the AMA in 1999 found that patients who wrote about their feelings surrounding stressful life events experienced improved immune response over those people who simply recorded their plans for the day. But do we have to write about our traumas in order to reap the benefits of journaling? Many people - including Julia Cameron in The Artist’s Way - swear by the technique of writing three quick pages every morning without censoring, planning or structuring.

Another proponent Gillie Bolton,
Senior Research Fellow in Medicine and the Arts, King’s College London University, recommends a 6 minute “mind dump” of information followed by a slightly more structured time of writing about a concrete rather than abstract theme. Childhood memories are recommended as a rich vein.

Common sense tells us that in something as personal as physical and mental health, we would be best - after scouting about for the options - to do what feels right for us. Perhaps that will be an information “dump” one day, but a deep soul-searching trauma-review the next. One thing is sure. Once you’ve given yourself the time and space to explore yourself through journaling, you will return to it again and again as a free, portable, side effect-free way to heal susceptible parts of yourself.

What those susceptible parts are, no one can tell you. It might be improved mood, clarity of thought or immune function. It’s worth a few minutes of each day devoted to our journals to take a chance on all of the above and more.

We end with a quote from Gillie Bolton’s page of therapeutic writing prescriptions:

To me, writing is actually a process of deep listening, attending to some of the many voices in the self that are habitually blanketed during our waking lives. Some of those voices we ignore at our peril. This is why people who write for the first time with a trusted facilitator say things like: ‘it unlocked something I didn’t know was there’….Someone I worked with said: ‘Hell, did I write that? Was that really me?’ You can’t pick something safe with writing, like you can with role-play. I suppose it’s because you’re not listening to yourself as you write. Writing takes you out of control….you listen to yourself after you write. And this is the key. The interlocution is delayed until the writer chooses to reread their own writing. While they write, the page offers no judgement at all.

a good article on the topic from The Observer.

See all our articles on Journaling
Here are all our articles on Writing

Originally published in the July 2005 issue of The Practically Creative Quarterly, theme: space and spaces