Grid Patterns and More

Here’s a quick look at the many different Zen-Doodles I’ve created over the last couple of weeks.

A fellow artist once told me that if we lay out a series of pictures or paintings, it will always look impressive to others. There is, apparently, something about order and multiplicity that resonates within most of us, the idea of a unified collection… something of that nature. All right, so I can’t explain why groups of little things almost always feel pleasing, but they do. That’s why I followed that advice to show off these fifteen little squares of ink-doodling. Even my husband was impressed, but, of course, he’s a fan of all my art, so I shouldn’t be surprised.

You’ve seen many of these doodles before. These squares represent several different approaches to Zen-Doodles or Zentangles.  Some are free-form in nature with no discernible pattern or design. Others — such as the ones I shared recently — are based on a specific idea, such as “crossing lines”.

The latest additions to my doodling collection are ones based on grids of one sort or another. First, there are these designs, created by dividing the square into 16 sections and then repeating a specific design element.

Another grid can be created by dividing the square a bit like cutting a pie — a square pie, though, not a round one. This was a fun technique to try, although I found it a bit confusing to add auras — those lines used to embellish the basic shapes.

I learn more about the doodling process each time I sit down with my cut-out squares and my trusty Sharpie. For me, it’s a time of the day that I truly look forward to. Typically, I save my doodling until after I’ve finished up in the studio each afternoon. I then settle into my recliner in our living room, and work on a nice “drawing board” I can comfortably hold in my lap. I listen to quiet music, or simply enjoy the peacefulness of a quiet house. I doodle in series — always making three doodles, usually now with a particular idea or process in mind. I work first with a basic technique, and then play with variations and embellishments for my second and third doodle.

Later today I’ll be playing around with another grid-design, one which uses lines that curve a bit. It should be fun!

Among my fifteen doodles — so far, but with many more to come — I see ones I like, ones I don’t care for at all, ones that were lots of fun to create, and some that were a bit more challenging. It’s all right, though. Even if a doodle doesn’t turn out quite the way we thought it would, or even if we just don’t like a doodle, it’s fine. Doodling is fun, and no matter what you do, you really can’t go wrong!

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