July challenge wrap up

Thanks to shadows and clouds , kimbu and Janie for taking up the zen challenge. I definitely got a lot more out of it than I thought I would. Drawing that leaf was the best experience.

August challenge will be posted up soon.

earth's poem

nature
earth's poem
for those who care to listen

~
















I hadn't realised that I'd been away from my blog for over a week. Stuff happens...like spending the entire weekend reading the very last ever Harry Potter book (it's fantastic and that's all I'm saying).

After inhabiting Harry's world so intensely, I felt the best way to bring me back to reality was to do some zen drawing. So I sat down to draw this leaf. It blew onto our doorstep one day and I knew I had to draw it. Doing so was the first time since I started the zen drawing thing that I felt I really understood what it's about. I finished the drawing in two separate sittings of about 2 hours each. I felt like I really connected with the contours of the leaf, I could feel its curves and see the shadows collecting on its surface. Not surprisingly, I really enjoyed it, I felt like I was drawing with my whole self, even my heart. It was also an immensely rewarding lesson on the value of slowing down and being patient.

It also helped me to understand something I've been reading and contemplating. It comes from Robert Henri's The Art Spirit, which I picked up for guidance after my painting struggles. And oh what a treasure it is! Here's just one illuminating thought from it:-

"The object of painting a picture is not to make a picture - however unreasonable this may sound. The picture, if a picture results, is a by-product and may be useful, valuable, interesting as a sign of what has past. The object, which is back of every true work of art, is the attainment of a state of being, a state of high functioning, a more than ordinary moment of existence...These results, however crude, become dear to the artist who made them because they are records of the states of being which he has enjoyed and which he would regain. They are likewise interesting to others because they are to some extent readable and reveal the possibilities of greater existence." (from The Art Spirit, emphasis his)

...which is kind of similar to the state of being present and mindful, in zen seeing and drawing, and made me see the value of paying attention, of not just seeing but also feeling what I'm drawing with my whole being, something that I should be doing every time I sit down to draw or paint, and not just during the month of trying out zen drawing.

Anyway, The Art Spirit is full of wonderfully encouraging, wise and inspiring insights. It feels like a gift to have discovered it just when I'm struggling so much with painting...don't you just love it when stuff like that happens?

seeing things

Here are both my attempts at drawing a tiny pine cone that I found in Wales. It's in the shape of a rose. I didn't like my first attempt too much, so I did it again.

Lottie

different ways of seeing a thistle head

seeing paul?

did i see?

This was / is very challenging. I had to remember to stay present and relaxed, to stay focussed, but not try to control the picture too much. I had to keep reminding myself that the aim wasn't to produce a beautiful picture, but a truthful one. Did I really see and did my hand translate that seeing? I don't know. Perhaps there were moments of seeing, but old habits got in the way. I'll keep going though.

July challenge

July's challenge is to see. To look, to really see, to be present and to draw. I'm setting this challenge because I've noticed my tendency to draw too quickly, impatiently, hurriedly. I've been drawing and painting (and doing most things) with too busy a mind. I know I need to slow down, be patient, to be present, really look and see, connect. I'll be drawing guidance from Frederick Franck's Zen Seeing, Zen Drawing.

You can drawing using any medium you like. Part of the challenge will be to see the ordinary objects around you anew, to see the details and connect with them. And yes, in a way, it is a form of meditation, another form of practice for being present, which is what meditation is (to me).

Above is an example of a time I made myself really look. It's a drawing of a piece of wood I found on the beach at Fiorenzuola in Italy.

So, if you feel the need to be still, be present, to see with open eyes...give this a go. And if you do, leave me a comment to let me know. I'll post a link to your drawing in the sidebar of my blog.

Enjoy!