Zentangle Art

Zentangle art is a very popular art subject nowadays. In fact, this article will help to learn Zentangle art for beginners about its basics, painting, and letters.

Zentangle Art is a non-representational & unplanned drawing. It has structured patterns or Tangles. Actually, unplanned or random structured patterns are tangles. We can create these tangles by using dots, lines, simple curves, s-curves & orbs.

In my view, this art is just like Doodle art. I found no major difference between these two. However, doodle art is older than this type of art. Unplanned way of drawing, random structured patterns, abstract design, & sudden created images are found in Doodle as well as Zentangle Art.

Watch All About Zentangle Art in This Video:

Meaning of Zentangle

The word ‘Zentangle” is formed with two words- Zen+Tangle. So, the meaning of these two words is:

Zen- a state of calm attentiveness, relaxed, or it’s also a Japanese form of Buddhism that is related to meditation

Tangles- The unplanned & randomly created structured patterns, lines, design are called tangles.

Hence, the meaning of the word ‘Zentangle Art’ is the art that has a relaxed or meditational, random & unplanned design, patterns, or tangles.

Origin

Zentangle Art was developed by Rick and Maria in 2003. In the fall of 2003, Maria was adding patterns to the background of a letter. Meanwhile, Rick & interrupted her. This interruption made her realise what she was experiencing just some time ago. She explained the feeling of selflessness, timelessness, effortlessness, and a rich immersion in what she was doing. Rick told her that she was describing meditation. Notably, Rick had practiced meditation for many years.

So, this was the birth of new methods of drawing. Later on, they named Zentangle Art to this new form of drawing.

zentangle artwork — A student making Zentangle Artwork

Zantangle & Doodle

As I already mentioned, Zentangle art is new with its name but not with the design. The design & patterns used in Zentangle Art had already been used in many art forms. Especially, the tangles & patterns have already been used in doodle art. Even one can see these patterns in Mehndi Art used in India for so many years.

Although Zentangle is developed with a new name & some purpose & style was added to it, yet it has nothing that makes it a different new art method. This is my personal view about Zentangle Art.

Advantages

No Mistakes in Zentangle
Meditational Art Form
Simple & Satisfying Art
Therapy for Mental Calmness
No Artistic Skills required
No Much Art Material Required

How to Start

It is very easy to draw as there are no mistakes in Zentangle art. First of all, we discuss the art materials:

Pen & Pencil

Tiles of Paper

The small pieces (square or rectangular) are used for this method of art. This small paper is called tiles of Zentangle art. However, you can use the following paper too:

Watercolor/Color

We need pencils and a pen of any kind. But it is better than the pen must be black. Any gel pen or specialized pen for Zentangle can be used. Here are some of the pen sets below in the images. We can use them:

Although there is no need to use watercolor or any other color, it makes the drawing impressive. Adding some color makes Zentangle look more beautiful & different. However, one can use any color except watercolor.

You can check out some art materials here and can find out the prices too:

How to Start

First Step- Take a small piece of a sheet or tile, and draw anything randomly. You can use abstract art as you will.

Second Step- Whatever you draw in step one, concentrate on it. Highlight them, darken them, and make them complete by using pens and ink.

Third Step- Finish your piece in any way you wish to do. The great things about Zentangle are the result of your drawing. Anything that you have drawn & you finish it, it will have a wonderful result. Your result may be so pleasant beyond your imagination.

Zentangle for Students & Art Lovers

Zentangle is a very creative artwork for kids or students. Simplicity of technique, limited and fewer expenses of art materials make Zentangle so easy. So, anyone can try this wonderful art method. You might not be an artist, but you could be a wonderful Zentangle artist.

Conclusion

Something new is always a progressive thing for any art form. I think developing Zentangle, a simple art method with limited art material makes it awesome. The popularity of Zentangle around the globe is proof of its success. It can be a creative and original artwork if you concentrate on doing it on your own. So, enjoy this article along with Zentangle and give your feedback in the comment box.

Happy Zentangle day!